Turnpike
by Rangemansbabe
Summary: There's a new hire in town and Stephanie doesn't know how to handle it. Trouble in Trenton when her skip turns to be a suspect in a major police case. Rangemen, crime, beat downs- you get the drift. *Warning for use of strong language*
1. Chapter 1

I own no one. Paige Walker will be a figment of my imagination. Though I would love to have a Ranger hanging out at my beck and call. This is my first **real **FanFic. Hoping this will become a multiple chapter FanFic, unless it's not very good, so let me know!

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In a blur of yellow and blue spandex, Lula burst into the bonds office yelling something indiscernible about Trenton PD. "Did you see her? Why they decided on that skinny ass is a mystery and all, but, damn! She got that whole department in a tight spot if you know what I mean."

Connie looked up from her nail filing with a strange look informing her overly spandex clad filing/bounty hunting friend she had no idea what she was talking about. "What you are saying is obviously news to me, and that is saying something. Should we get on the gossip line?"

"No way! I saw her with my own two eyes! All I can say is, damn! She just near arrived!" Lula blurted placing two slightly beefy hands on what can only be described as an overly taught banana peel mini skirt.

"If you care to explain, I'm all ears." Connie replied setting her nail file aside, listening with piqued interest.

"Well, I was taking my skip into the police office, which you know I hate doing cuz them cops give me the Willies, but a girl's gotta get her manicure and all, and when I dropped him off, there she was! Swaying those little hips and those long legs in one them fancy designer suits. I mean, I could have given her a few pointers in fashion, but the way she walked and flipped that…"

"You have a body receipt?" Connie interrupted.

"Yea. I got old man street flasher George Drockett. He and I use to be pretty tight on the corner if you know what I mean. So I convinced him, only as Lula can, to get in and go down to the police station. I might have also told him that if he got released we could meet later. That's when I saw Miss Fancy Pants walking down the hall at the station and…."

"You telling me that TPD's got a new hire?"

"I'm tellin' you it's more than a new hire she-"

"I didn't hear anything about this on the vine." Connie stated pointedly.

"She just arrived!" Huffing irritably

"Just in today?"

"Last minute."

"I can't hardly believe this. Just like believing you're waving a body receipt in my face. Tell me more about this woman." Connie pried.

"Hmmph. AS I was saying. She was all designer and shit and boy when she flipped that hair! Whoo! I thought I was going to wet myself! And I'm straight you know? I don't think I'd ever seen reddish color like that. Maybe I should change mine to look more powerful." Lula whipped out a mirror pausing as she began examining her magenta hued braids snaking across her scalp. She snapped the mirror closed, "So I seen her walkin' past the desk and giving one of them fancy friendly smiles to docket man, like they was best friends, only she just arrived, and walked straightway down the hall."

"So TPD has a new officer," Connie waved off nonchalantly, "it's not earth shattering."

"But you didn't see what I had seen." Lula protested back.

Connie briefly studied Lula not realizing the significance of what she was describing. "Let me get this straight: TPD gets a new hire and you're in a huff because a pretty woman walks down the hall this morning?"

"Not pretty, honey! She's like X-Men Jean/Phoenix-crazy-power-woman Woman sexy!"

"Jean Grey X-Men 2 or 3?"

"Two."

"Really?"

"Uh huh."

"Whoa."

"Tell me about it! But that ain't all! Using my fine honed sleuthing skills I got the down lo' on Miss Skinny Ass. She's a transfer from Miami to fill a position with Trenton."

"Just how much of a filling are we talking about?"

"Permanent." Lula paused. "Permanent homicide."

"Permanent homicide." Connie repeated.

"Uh huh."

"I wonder if she's got something to do with the rise in crime? There are much more dead people turning up on the streets and river."

"Whatever it is, my radar is all out of whack. My needle is going round and round."

The silence hung briefly between the two women as they contemplated the magnitude of this new arrival and sudden slew of information. Connie tapped her now perfectly filed nail on the desk taking this in with great interest. "So we have a new X-woman of mystery in town."

"What X-woman of mystery?" Came a voice from the door.

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It would be great if there were some reviews and feedback! I've decided to try a full blown fanfic, but I'm still really new with this and want to know if it something I should continue.


	2. Chapter 2

The girls turned to see a mess of curls slump onto the shoddy sofa in the waiting area with a "humph." Her piercing blue eyes scanned the office and settled on her two friends. As she drove by the office she could tell by the waving hands and intent look on Connie's face that they were engaged in a juicy conversation. Stephanie was usually a little leery to be involved in Connie/Lula gossips, but today she was welcoming anything that remotely resembled exciting.

"X-woman of mystery nothing! We got the dirt from down at TP…" Lula stopped and sniffed the air. "What the _hell_ is that smell?"

"Oh, man! It smells awful!" Connie agreed.

"Yeah, like rotten Chinese!" Lula concurred, hand flying to her nose.

"More like the time the dumpster with the fish heads and lobster tails caught fire and melted!"

"Kind of, or like when they had the leak on the sewer line going down Stark Street! Wheeewww, that was something fierce, and not just for business."

"Or last summer when the cond…" Connie paused and stared wide-eyed at Lula and they both knowingly turned towards Stephanie who was intently examining her shoelaces.

"That bad, huh?" She asked in a defeated tone.

"That bad nothing, girl! You reek!" Lula screeched waving at her nose. "I think I'm gonna pass out! My delicate nasal caves are too sensitive for this stench."

"I tried to wash up but apparently it didn't work. Maybe that's why I caught my skip. I thought he was going to take off, but before he could slam the door on me, he puked on the threshold."

"No wonder you stink," Connie knowingly nodded, "that can happen when you get a low-life-drunk-Vinnie-FTA blowing chunks on you."

"But I didn't get any of my guys' barf on me." Stephanie sighed

"You mean to tell me that you didn't get any of your skip's barf on you, but you went out smelling this way?" Lula exclaimed.

Stephanie gave a barely nod as she played with her purse handle.

"Damn. You ripe, girl!"

"I agree," came Connie's reply. "So did you go to the landfill to get a skip earlier?"

"No, I left from Morelli's house this morning before getting my skip."

"What kinda shit you in with him?!" Lula exclaimed.

She gave Lula a chagrined look and continued. "Joe and I decided to try sushi last night, but it definitely was not Pino's. So after a few bites, we decided that meatball subs would be better than what we were eating. We called in the subs and left for Pino's. When we came back, all the sushi was gone and Bob had seaweed in his teeth. We didn't think much of it because he eats things much worse all the time."

"Hmmph, that's practically inhumane. Animal abuse if you ask me." Lula interrupted, placing her face in front of a small fan.

"Anyway. I went to take him for a walk this morning, but as I was bending down in front of him hooking up his leash, up came all the sushi from the night before."

Both women jumped back in disgust with a conglomerated "eww" grasping for their mouths spouting things that sounded like "Bob chunks" and "rotten fish parts."

"And I thought that was gel gnarling your hair today! Turns out it's fish brains and Bob upchuck. You're nasty!" Lula wheezed out. "This stench is too much, I gotta go eat some non-fish something."

"How about I take your body receipt and then you go home to shower and burn your clothes?" Connie suggested.

Stephanie handed over the receipt. "I really didn't think it was that bad."

"Oh, it is." Lula concurred, hoisting her purse up, but stopping mid lift, a silent "oh," escaping her lips.

"That's only because you're used to it now, honey." Connie ripped the check for $300 out of her book and handed it over to Stephanie. Stephanie gave an involuntary shiver and murmured her thanks. She grabbed her bag turning to leave and planted herself into an unmovable black clad figure.

"Babe,"

Stephanie dropped her bag and squeaked as she stared up at the muscled mocha man before her. His hair was cut short since his last "wind" assignment, totally hot. She could feel the inkling of saliva accumulating at the corner of her mouth. Backing up, she checked out his second skin shirt begging to be ripped from the bulging muscles, and sneaked a full view of everything Ranger had to offer.

"Um…hi, Ranger."

His dark eyes softened as he bent to pick up Stephanie's bag. Handing her the purse, he gave an almost imperceptible sniff glancing around the office. Meanwhile, Connie was fighting Lula for fan space, but not due to the scent in the room.

"Connie, you should have Vinnie invest in some air fresheners, or pay to have this office cleaned." Ranger commented as he retrieved his skips from Connie's desk. "It stinks."

"It ain't the office Batman, it's Bob." Lula said in a voice disrupted by the power of the fan air blowing in her face.

Ranger turned facing Stephanie with his almost grin and shook his head. "Babe."

"Ranger," Connie started from her fan, "I got one more for you that _just came in_." Instead of handing him the usual file, she quickly scribbled something on a sheet of paper. Ranger very slightly lifted an eyebrow as she handed him the piece of paper. "Thought you might find this interesting."

He unfolded the paper and briefly scanned what Connie wrote. He nodded to the girls and walked out the door to the waiting black SUV.

"Damn! I swear I get hot flashes every time that man come around, and I know I ain't menopausal!" Lula said gathering her purse as she walked to the door. "Mm mm mmm, he so fine! Well, so is my Tanky. But, damn!"

"I guess it could be worse, right?" Came Stephanie's question, she too walking to the door.

"Yea, even superheroes got stinky days. Though I don't think Superman does or Batman. Actually, I _know_ Batman never does. Hell, I don't even think Spiderman does! But I'm sure they got their days."

Stephanie looked away for a moment thinking, "What about X-men?"

"Definitely not!" Lula affirmed.

"No, you guys were talking about X-men."

"Ooo weee, honey, I got some hot shit on the vine, I'll tell you what. That'll have to come in a much less hostile environment if you know what I'm saying."

"But," Stephanie began but stopped understandingly grimacing at Lula.

"Don't you worry girl, we'll be discussing when you get all fresh and stuff, this is too good. You go get your ass clean and we'll fill you in on the hot shit of Trenton." Lula commented pushing through the door. "Besides, I'm starved!"

"Steph!" Connie called after her. Stephanie paused with the door open and turned back, "Yeah?"

"Burn the clothes."


	3. Chapter 3

Angry footsteps and Italian muttering could be heard from the bowels of TPD as the door to the Chief's office burst open.

"What the hell is this?" Joe Morelli forcefully said slapping a pink crumpled paper on Chief Larson's desk. "Is this some kind joke?"

Unfazed, the Chief looked up over his keyboard, at the crumpled paper stamped 'Urgent CONFIDENTIAL,' his pale eyes moving up, locking with Morelli's glare. "Would you care to attempt that again Detective?"

Joe continued to scowl at the Chief, clenching his jaw as he tried to cool his temper. "Chief, I received this note this morning informing me of a new hire."

"That's correct. Detective Walker is transferring from Miami PD to fill a position with us."

"I wasn't aware that there was a position to be filled. Especially in my dep…In homicide." Joe retorted through clenched teeth.

"There is now. You have more open files than you know what to do with, and they keep piling up. Furthermore, you, above anyone else, know that this weapons infiltration has doubled your homicide cases the last six weeks. We've needed a new hire down there for years, and it couldn't have come at a more convenient time."

"But, sir…"

"Is there a problem? The Chief interrupted.

"Hell yes there's a problem! Partner? You are making this new hire my partner? You know I work my cases alone."

"Things have changed and it is the most logical thing for this department. Most other detectives work in pairs and…"

"But I am not most detectives!" Joe shot

"Partners are more efficient and bring different perspectives to each case accelerating their closure."

"But…"

"But, it's not up for discussion. Anything else, Detective?"

Joe crumpled the paper into a tight ball and pursed his lips so tight the vein in the side of his head looked like it would burst. "No." With that, Joe turned to leave punching his fist in his hand.

"Detective!" Chief called after him causing him to stop. "Don't you want to know when to meet your new partner?" '_Not in particular'_ Joe thought. Instead he just stared. "My office 11:30. You will have an informal meeting, at that time you will introduce your partner to the area and bring her back to the station for the official department introduction at 1800. Do you understand?"

"Her, sir?"

"That's correct, Morelli. Detective Paige Walker. I will expect you here at 11:30. That gives you twenty minutes to adjust your attitude. Close the door on your way out."

Morelli turned out of the Chief's office closing the door behind him. "Fuck!" Startled workers shot heads up from their desks and watched Morelli stalk down the stairs. Arriving at his desk, he kicked the side and slumped into his chair, smacking his head down on a stack of files.

"Rough day?"

Morelli took a deep breath, not moving. "Not like you wouldn't know, huh?"

"Hardly," Arnie Rupp shook his head sighing, "have you seen her yet?"

"Who?"

"Don't tell me you don't know about the new hire?"

"Of course I know about the new hire, asshole." Joe retorted.

"It's been really hush-hush which department she's going to be in."

"Really?" Morelli feigned curiosity.

"They've kept the whole thing really quiet. We got a pool going to see where they are going to place her, you want in?"

Suddenly, the sun broke through and Morelli hid a smile behind his cop face. "Yeah, what's it running?"

"It's up to $640. My money's on patrol, but there is quite a bit in forensics and special weapons and tact. What are you in for? Closing bets at noon."

"Put me in for thirty for homicide."

"Homicide?"

"My day can't get much worse. You see these files? I'm surprised we haven't crossed paths, Rupp."

"Touché. I fear soon Morelli. This weapons influx is creating a massive problem. It's only going to get worse. I'll put you down for thirty bucks." He scribbled on his pad and walked away. "See you at six."

Morelli sighed. _At least I can get some compensation for this. Heh, poor bastards._ Morelli checked his watch and silently cursed. It was time.

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Morelli trudged up the stairs back to the Chief's office. The door was open so he walked in to the Chief's desk.

"Ahh, Detective! You made it!" Chief Larson said cheekily. "Close the door please." Morelli complied. "I want you to meet your new partner. Detective Morelli, this is Paige Walker." He motioned with his hand to a woman behind Morelli.

Joe turned around but did not advance towards the tall slender woman standing in front of him. at 5'9", her light gray suit coat was perfectly tailored and accentuated her thin figure under the matching pencil skirt. Paige smiled and extended a hand. He grabbed her hand and was surprised at how soft they were yet how firm her grip was. He held her gaze, caught in by her cat eyes. "Paige Walker. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." He managed to get out.

"Chief here has assigned me to homicide and informed me that you and I are going to be partners. It's been awhile since I've worked with a partner, but experience is that two heads are better than one."

"That's the same thing I say." Joe murmured, more to himself than her.

"Morelli, as we discussed earlier, I believe it would be beneficial for Ms. Walker to get a feel for the area. So if you will?" Chief motioned to the door a thin smile on his lips. Morelli just stared back and returned a smile to Paige.

"Absolutely. Ms. Walker…"

"Please, that is my mother."

Joe nodded and opened the door motioning to leave. "Then, Paige, would you care for lunch? If there's nothing better known in Trenton than the crime, it's the food. How about it?"

"I am quite hungry, airplane food just isn't what it used to be."

Joe was watching the back profile of Paige as she walked down the hall. He gave a small smile as his eyes trailed from her ankles all the way up her long milky white legs to her swaying burgundy red flipped out hair. They walked out of the building towards Joe's SUV. Joe went to open the door for Paige, but she shut it before he had the chance and flipped him around pinning him against the car.

"Alright, Morelli, we need to get a few things straight here." Joe stood there stunned at the sudden turn in events and decided to remain silent. "I don't like the idea of being with a partner anymore than you, but we're going to make do."

"Listen here, honey, I can make anything work, and if you want to make this easy, I'm Mr. Easy. This is virgin territory for me, which is saying a lot. But I'll do as I'm told, within reason."

"Good." She paused and relaxed the defensive stance she had taken. "I'm sorry, it's just that my," Paige paused looking away, "never mind. Let's rock this place, huh?"

"You got it. So I suppose you want some greens?"

"Hardly, a girl can't live on rabbit food." Paige said climbing into the vehicle.

This got an even bigger smile from Joe, "Then how about a meatball sub? I know the best place in town."

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Continue yes? A little feedback pretty please??


	4. Chapter 4

*****Thank you everyone for all your feedback, I appreciate it greatly*

Stephanie arrived at her apartment deciding it would be best to change and shower in an environment she didn't currently live in. Standing in the entryway, she stripped down and threw the clothes in a plastic garbage bag. Not wanting to part with her clothes, she figured it was best to drop them off at her parent's house for cleaning. After all, her mom was accustomed to these kinds of things.

After what she felt was a thorough cleaning, Stephanie dressed and decided on a purple v-neck sweater and jeans as the summer air was trying to turn cooler as autumn approached. Rex was sufficiently being fed with a grape and some cheerios when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"You up for some pizza, white girl?" Came Lula's voice.

"Always."

"Good. Then get yo' ass down to Pinos."

"I'll be down in a jiffy, but I got to make a quick stop."

"That's good, cuz Perv Man is out. Something about the dog track, but I'm positive he said he was going to dog fu…"

"No, no! That's okay! I'm leaving now." Stephanie hung up and grabbed the plastic bag of Bob barf clothes heaving it over her shoulder Santa Claus style. Stephanie decided to take the stairs and bounded down to the parking lot. Fortunately, Tuesday afternoon bingo was preceded by lunch at the senior center, so the lot was nearly empty and she was able to park near the door.

She walked up to her white Toyota Corolla and opened the back door to throw her bag in. "Shit!" She looked at the door handle in her hand and threw the bag and the door handle in the back seat. "Good thing no one ever rides in the back." She muttered.

The drive to her parents house was quick, especially since her stomach kept reminding her how hungry it was. Retrieving the barf bag from the back seat, she raced up the steps into the house.

"Hey, Mom!" She yelled going back to the kitchen. Her childhood home was modest and fit her parents well, but the lack of additional bathrooms made it horrible for family functions or basically just living with more than two people. The fact that Grandma Mazur had moved in after Grandpa went to the big fat fryer in the sky made livability nearly impossible. "I brought my laundry over, could you wash it?"

"This isn't more of your job is it?" Came a voice from the refrigerator.

"No, the dog threw up on me."

"Well, at least it's not the dumpster again. Would you like to stay for lunch? I picked up some sliced ham from Giovachinni's Market."

"No, thanks, I got a lunch date."

"With another man? What about Joseph?"

"Not with another man, I'm still with Joe. It's an office meeting."

"Well that's a relief. How about dinner then? You could bring Joseph. I'm making pork chops."

Mom always knows the right things to say. "Dessert?

"Chocolate cake."

"I'll be here, but I can't exactly vouch for Joe. See you at six."

She quickly made it to Pino's, and parked on the street. Apparently everyone had the same idea the girls did about getting lunch. Stephanie checked her watch and saw that it was just before noon. At noontime, the usual business lunch crowd packed the bar area getting an early start on happy hour. By one, it was usually down to a few stragglers and all day drunks. She walked in and immediately spotted Lula and Connie at the back wall engrossed in animated conversation.

"…don't see why not. Wolverine would just flex those mighty pecs and slice Spidy's web into oblivion with those massive metal fingers. Woo!" Sliding into the table next to Lula, Stephanie imagined the conversation she had just entered into was going nowhere.

"Hey! What's going on? Anything new and exciting?" Stephanie chimed in hoping to lead the conversation to a different direction.

"I hope you don't mind, but we already ordered." Connie said with a wave of her hand.

"Yeah, lots of meat. And olives so we get our vegetables. Batman would be proud!" Lula said sipping her soda.

"Nah, no problems, I'm starving."

"Ooo, you got here just in time, pizza's here!" Lula excitedly said burying a napkin into the depths of her breasts. The girls looked with greedy eyes as the waiter placed the pizza on the table. The girls all dove in like a pack of wolves on a three-legged cat.

" So what's been going on?" Stephanie said taking a big cheese dripping bite out of her slice.

"Oh, Stephanie, Lula has the dirt. We're talking fresh." Connie said shaking more cheese onto her pizza.

"You got that straight! I was down at TPD today getting my skip…"

"You got a skip?" Stephanie asked with a mouth full of pizza, clearly shocked.

Lula just stared and continued on. "Hmph, I was down at TPD and saw first hand that they got a new hire."

"So?"

"Hey! You let me finish, white girl! You as bad as her." She waved with her hand at Connie, flinging cheese against the wall. "Anyway, Trenton's got a new hire and she is hot! It took me forever to figure out what she was doing there cause nobody knew. But by only the way Lula can, I found out she's here for a position in homicide."

"Homicide?" Stephanie asked dropping her cup on her plate.

"Yeah. And she's here to stay, too. You all want that last slice?" Lula asked picking the sausage off the pan and stacking it on the last slice. Both girls declined and Lula shoveled it. "I'm telling ya, she is like that sexy Jean from X-men. Down to that sexy hair and cut. No one really knows anything about her either except she's from Miami."

"What no record? She had to have transferred with something." Stephanie stated pointedly.

"I'm sure we'll pick up something tomorrow." Connie said checking her make-up in her mirror. "I gave Ranger the information this morning."

"Is that what you handed Batman? I was wondering. Thought you was telling him you were free or something Saturday night. I was going to tag along."

"Figured he would find the arrival of Ms. Walker interesting. Besides, I have orgasms just thinking about the searching tool and resources at Rangeman."

Lula let out a gasp.

"Holy, shit! It's her!" Lula exclaimed looking at the door. "And look who's with her!"


	5. Chapter 5

The girls gaped at the door not taking their eyes off the legs coming out of the bottom of the skirt.

"Woah. Lula, you were right, she's definitely something." Stephanie whispered.

"Steph, what's your man doing with her? She looks like some kind of escort." Connie questioned.

"Well, maybe he's just being hospitable."

"Hospitable my ass! Oh, shit! Their coming this way!" Lula exclaimed, suddenly interested in the olive parts on her plate, and Connie and Stephanie in their straws.

"Hi, Cupcake."

Stephanie's head shot up, an exaggerated look of surprise on her face. "Oh! Hi, Joe! I didn't see you walk in. Uh, what are you doing here?"

"We came for lunch, what's it look like?"

"We?" Stephanie questioned.

"Stephanie, this is Paige." Morelli motioned to the stunning woman next to him.

"It is a pleasure to meet you." Paige smoothly acknowledged Stephanie, extending a milky white hand. Catching her breath, Stephanie choked and coughed as she cordially took the hand before her. Paige, however, could not believe the group of women at the table before her. Yikes.

'_Holy shit_. _The pleasure is all yours bitch.'_ Stephanie thought as the woman attached to the hand beamed a wily smile. Stephanie released her hand as she felt the stare of the emerald eyes pierce her sapphire ones.

"Paige is a new hire at the department, we're going to be working homicide together. I'm giving her the VIP tour of Trenton's finest establishments." Morelli was talking, but it sounded like auctioneer gibberish in Stephanie's head.

_Stephanie lunged at Paige pulling her perfect hair and ripping her designer suit. She reared her fist and planted it on her nose, squirting blood. Lula tossed her a stun gun and she zapped Paige until she twitched like a roach. _"Stephanie?" Morelli's voice pulled her from her trance.

"Huh…What?"

"You were looking like you were ready to taze someone. Would you mind if we joined you?"

"Yes. Um, I mean, no. I mean…uh, well, we're just leaving. We got to get back to the office. Right, girls?" Stephanie turned around to see two open mouths gaping at the woman before them. Stephanie nervously played with the strap of her purse and gave Lula a kick in the leg.

"Ow! What the, he…."

"I was telling Joe were just leaving, Lula."

"We were? Oh! Oh yeah, we were, got business to take care of. Mean fuckers to catch and shoot. All that badass shit to do and stuff." Lula rambled, gathering her stuff. Connie took cue and left some cash on the table rising to leave.

"It was nice to meet you Paige." Connie said heading for the door. "Joe, always a pleasure. You can sit that fine ass where I was sitting. It's still warm."

"I may take you up on that Connie."

With that, the three girls left Pino's barely containing themselves until they exited to the sidewalk.

"Sweet, goodness!" Connie spat.

"I know! And y'all didn't believe me! She's hot. And did you see those shoes!"

"Well, she's definitely something." Stephanie murmured again looking back at the building. She could see Joe and Paige talking like lost friends at the table they just vacated. "Let's get back to the office and pick up the skips. I think I could use some shopping money. Lula tells me there's a shoe sale at Macy's."

"When isn't there a shoe sale at Macy's, girl? Let's get to office!"

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"That's quite a group of women." Paige commented removing her jacket, revealing a white cap sleeve blouse.

"Ha, you have no idea." Morelli replied. He ordered two meatball subs and glanced over at Paige, his eyes resting on a four inch scar on her upper right arm. "I bet you never thought spandex could look so good."

Paige laughed and followed Morelli's gaze to her arm. "Something interest you, Morelli?" Morelli just held her gaze. "I see yours is nearly as obvious."

Joe touched his brow and gave her a questioning glance. "It's a birthmark." She stated, indicating the end of questioning. The subs arrived and Paige agreed that it was the best meatball sub she had ever had. "So tell me about the others."

"Steph and Connie?"

"Yes. I'm suppose to get to know the town."

"Connie's got major connections to the mob. She's an ask no questions kind of gal, but clean. She may have family ties and affiliations, but she's one hell of a resource."

"And the curly haired one?"

"Stephanie? We go way back. On off on off…"

"And right now?" Paige quizzed, hands folded under chin.

Joe paused, "On."

"Surprising, given her reputation." This got an eyebrow lift from Joe. "Bombshell Bounty Hunter? Who would have thought I just came face to face with Trenton's local celebrity."

"We've had our differences, but we're not going to get into that, we're going to go for a drive."

"I felt like we were making such progress." Paige joked. "It appears Trenton is more famous than I originally thought. Here I was thinking it was going to be the land of nothing. I'm already surprised."

"We're just full of surprises."

"Though I was skeptical, I was promised it would give me more than I expected." Paige said retrieving her jacket.

"Yep, and I promised you the tour. First stop Stark Street. You ready?"

The two detectives walked out of Pino's looking very much like police partners, especially as they climbed into the dark SUV.

"So what's the deal with Stark Street?" Paige asked watching the scenery gradually become more dilapidated.

"Part of town gone bad. Standard ho's, pimps, strippers, druggies, dealers. I'm sure that our supplier has got to be around here somewhere in an abandon warehouse."

"I don't think so." Paige retorted. "These guys are pretty high-profile if you know what I mean. A lot of money and they loved their status. Big parties, lots of girls, you know the type."

Joe pointed out parts of the town and people who were frequent fliers at the jail.

"Joe, you guys found a body floating in the Delaware about a month ago. Take me to where the body was found."

"_That _one." He gave her a grin and made a left, turning towards the Delaware River.

"Shit! Did you see that? Stop!" Paige screamed. Morelli slammed on the brakes and followed her pointed finger to a convenience store window where a man was holding up the cash register with a sawed off shotgun. Joe quickly moved the car to the alley next to the market. Paige and Joe jumped out of the car with guns drawn to their sides. Just as they came around the corner, the robber burst through the door and ran their direction, stopping just ten feet from the pair blocking his path.

"Stop! Police!" Both detectives shouted guns trained on the suspect. "Drop your gun!" Morelli yelled. Paige began to creep towards the street along the sidewalk closing the distance between them and the suspect. The suspect stood like a deer in headlights stunned at the guns drawn on him. "I'll ask you one more time!" The suspect looked at Morelli and instead of dropping the gun, threw the gun at him. Shocked, Morelli ducked and the suspect turned to flee.

Before he had a chance, Paige had already lunged into the air at a sprint and tackled the suspect to the ground, breaking her fall. "Bastard! We told you to stop! You want to continue to resist arrest?" The sirens could be heard in the distance, growing louder. Morelli stooped down next to Paige and removed a set of cuffs from his back pocket.

"Need these?" Indicating the cuffs hanging from his finger.

"Thank you detective. No pockets." She shrugged giving Morelli a toothy smile while she snapped the cuffs onto the man beneath her knee.

"I'm quite impressed, Paige."

"Well, I thought about shoot first, ask questions later, but that's just too much paperwork. Besides, the look on your face was priceless when he threw the gun at you. Ass. Who throws a gun?"

"That's because it's not loaded." Joe said holding up the empty shotgun.

As unfortunate as Joe originally perceived the setup, in the last five hours he was already beginning to warm to the idea of a wingman. Besides, it was an awesome field tackle. Joe stood nearby talking to the patrolmen that arrived giving his statement, smirking at Paige while she pulled the suspect to his feet. He couldn't believe she didn't rip her dress or expose anything while she flew through the air. Another patrolman relieved Paige and escorted the man to a squad car.

"Detective Walker, that truly was a remarkable feat."

"What's that, Joe?"

"How you didn't rip or scrape anything and how you got that much air in those heels."

Paige blushed and looked to the ground smiling. "Too many years on vice I guess."

"Well, it's 5:15, what do you say we get back to the station? I have to deliver you for your 6 o'clock debut."

Paige brushed the wrinkles out of her skirt and retrieved her jacket from the hood of the car, slinging it over her shoulder. "Whatever you say partner. Inquisitive minds are waiting."

"Yeah, and so is my pool."

"Pool?"

"There was a pool on which department you were going to join, and I happened to guess homicide."

"That's cheating, you knew."

"Yeah, but no one else did. I think that a congratulatory feast is in order don't you, Paige?"

Paige smiled and nodded. "Absolutely, we just had our first takedown."

"Let's get back to the station. First, I gotta make a quick call."


	6. Chapter 6

"Hello?"

"Hey, Cupcake. I got a meeting at six tonight."

"Yeah, I heard."

"Could you drop by the house and pick Bob up?"

"You want me to take Bob with me tonight?" Stephanie asked a little stunned.

"He's been home all day and I'm going to be home late tonight. Unless you are going to be home fairly early."

"I suppose I could take him with me. He always likes seeing Grandma."

"Great, I'll see you later." They hung up and Stephanie let loose.

"God! I feel so bent up right now! Hand me some files." Stephanie demanded with unintended vigor.

"Don't you start pulling an attitude on me." Connie warned handing her a stack. "Let's not be too hasty."

Lula and Stephanie both just stared at Connie. "Mmhmm. And aren't you just Miss Optimist?" Lula questioned pointing at Connie with an accusatory middle finger.

"All right! Steph, why don't you give Ranger a ring?"

"What, and say what? 'Hi, Ranger. Yeah, I was just wandering if you had any information on this new detective that's working with my boyfriend because I wanted to know if she was a threat and what she's doing here and what the deal is?' That would sound really great."

"Could have worse things. At least he's hot. Even his voice gets me going." Lula commented shivering.

"Thank you peanut gallery." Stephanie sighed and pulled out her phone.

"Yo,"

"Yo, yourself." Stephanie said apparently overly dejected.

"Something wrong, Babe?"

"Well…I need some help."

"A skip? Because I could send Hal over."

"No, it's sort of different."

"Sounds serious, Babe."

"Are you busy tomorrow afternoon?"

"Sorry, Babe. I have to run checks on Rangeman offices in Atlanta and Miami this week."

"Oh."

"I'll be back on Sunday. Be at Rangeman at seven."

"Okay." With that there was silence on the phone. "You know, for as much as he has to communicate with people you would think he would give some sort of concluding statement instead of just hanging up."

"He ain't exactly a man of many words. But you did talk to him, girl. That's good luck!" Lula said from the couch. Stephanie thumbed through the files.

"Seriously, how does Mooner always get himself arrested? You would think he would be too busy watching marathons to leave his house and get himself into trouble." Stephanie stated placing the remaining skip files back on Connie's desk, keeping four.

"Yeah, you would think that, but the man's gotta get his fix somehow. Kinda like me and chicken. Who else you got?"

"Nothing too terrible, mostly $3000 and under. Uhh, assaulting a police officer?

"That was classic." Connie began. "Mickey Greene was cycling through a park when he hit the front brake too hard and he slammed into Mo's hot dog stand. Wouldn't have been so bad except Mo beat him with the schnitzel, and Mickey was on duty."

"Talk about assault with a deadly weapon. Have you seen what those things can do to hips?" Lula commented.

"Let's see, a…jaywalker, Connie?"

"Yeah, Donald Creto he didn't have any clothes on at the time." Lula and Stephanie cringed.

"And a petty theft." Stephanie concluded.

"Who's your thief?" Connie asked.

"Diego "Pinkie" Chavez. Looks like a first time offender. Nothing big. Didn't even have a weapon."

"Yeah, he was a weird character, strange accent."

Stephanie shouldered her bag, tucking the files away. "What's today, Tuesday? _Bewitched_ marathon. That's not too bad. I'm off for Moonster. I'll catch you guys later."

"What about Macy's?" Lula inquired hands on hips.

"After I get my skips. I'll catch you later." Stephanie left the office and climbed into her POS. She rested her head against the seat and closed her eyes. "It's gotta get better." She murmured as she pointed the car to Mooner's.

Stephanie arrived at Mooner's and knocked on the door. The jingle of Samantha's nose wiggling could be heard through the front door. She knocked again and a haze escaped through the door as it swung open. "Mooner?" Stephanie called. She walked in and found Mooner in a trance with a bowl of cheez-its.

"Dude! I'm so glad you're here! Samanatha's mom is going to baby sit Tabitha!" Mooner said not taking his eyes off the television.

"I suppose I could watch. But we should go down to the station before dinner."

"Bummer! I totally forgot again! Oh, look! It's starting." Mooner fell into the TV zone and Stephanie counted down the episodes until four when the _My Three Sons_ marathon began, which thankfully, Mooner was not partial. They bagged some Twinkies for the road and went down to the station.

"Hey, Eddie. How did you get so lucky to do intakes?" Stephanie inquired, handing over Mooner.

"Miss the date again Mooner?"

"Dude, it's so hard to remember!"

"Uh, huh." Eddie said more to himself than Mooner." I'm working desk because they wanted as much department personnel as possible in the station for a "mandatory" meeting at six."

"Oh? Since when?" Stephanie asked signing a piece of paper.

"Since we got a new hire." Eddie took the paper back from Stephanie and ripped the bottom off. "Chief wants it to be a formal introduction. I think it's a little overboard, but I got twenty bucks in the pot that she's working vice."

"Homicide." Came Stephanie's flat reply.

"What?"

"You heard me, homicide. I saw her with Joe today, apparently he's in charge of getting her acquainted with Trenton."

"Damn. There went my money. This will definitely be interesting. Go collect." Eddie said handing her the body receipt.

"Actually, I'm off to collect dinner." With that Stephanie walked to her car and drove to get Bob.

000000

Paige and Joe arrived at the station and made their way to the briefing room. The din of conversation increased as the buzz of their recent takedown spread through the department. They were motioned to the front and complied by sitting next to the Chief.

"Good day, everyone!" Chief Larson began. "As most of you are aware, we have a new hire. I'd like to introduce Paige Walker. She transferred from working vice in Miami and will be joining our homicide team." This got a few groans, some high-fives, and overall chatter. "I suspect that you will appropriately introduce yourselves over the next several days. Further, I know everyone here has been working their asses off trying to manage their regular workloads as well as the rapid increase in responsibility with this damn weapons influx. They're out there killing faster than we can toe tag. I am optimistic that Detective Walker with assist in expediting the closure of this ordeal as she joins our force and works in homicide partnered with Joe Morelli."

Murmuring went all around and Joe signaled a nod of acknowledgement. A smile crept over his lips as he thought about the pool he just won. The meeting was adjourned and Paige was swarmed with well wishers. Morelli took the opportunity to pin down Arnie for his money.

"So? How much?"

"I have a sneaking suspicion that you were aware of this arrangement, Morelli." Arnie said fishing into his jacket.

"I didn't meet her until 11:30. I had already given you my bet." _'That is a true statement._' Joe rationalized.

"Mmhmm. Let's see, two hundred and…twenty-seven dollars. Not bad. You, Dorsey, and Gus."

"Thanks Arn. Here, have a tip." He shoved a twenty in Arnie's pocket and went to the front to collect Paige. "You ready?"

"How about some burgers, Joe?"

"How about a beer?"

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Stephanie drove down Slater Street and parked in front of the house. Apparently Bob could hardly contain himself because as soon as Stephanie unlocked the door, Bob ran two houses over and puked up more sushi. He gamboled back one house, left a giant load, than came to stand at Stephanie's feet.

"Feel better?" Bob wagged his shamwow worthy tail in acknowledgement. "Good, hop in." Stephanie opened the backdoor with the handle that worked, and Bob jumped into the back seat. They arrived in the Burg at her parent's house to be greeted by her mother standing with her hands on her hips.

"Hi Mom, I brought Bob."

"I noticed. And where's Joseph?"

"Mandatory meeting at work. He couldn't make it, but he wanted to be here." Liar, liar.

"Your grandmother is in a state."

Stephanie gave her a quizzical look and walked into the house followed by Bob only to be greeted by Grandma Mazur at the foot of the stairs in all her golden glory.

"Ain't it a pip? I got it on sale at one of them PlayGirl stores. I thought it was an exercise boutique, but it turned out they had these fabulous jumpsuits." Grandma did a turn and Stephanie tried to stifle a laugh. She couldn't help but admire the shiny gold vinyl zipper jumpsuit wrapping up a 97 year old looking body. Had she been Jennifer Lopez, she could have rocked it, but the fact that the zipper stopped an inch above her belly button was almost unbearable.

"Wow, Grandma. That's sure something." Stephanie closed her eyes hoping the wrinkly image would erase from her retinas. Unfortunately, when she opened her eyes, it, and Granny were still there in all their fleshy glory.

"I still got the figure for it. But I think my boobs got caught in the zipper. They're a little lower than I remember. Besides, I got a hot date tonight!"

"Really?" Stephanie said more to her mother than to Grandma.

"Oh, he's something. I met him at the Jalcowicz viewing yesterday. He says he walks around with a woody all day long, so that's gotta be something don't you think? I should be able to get some. So few even have it working ten minutes for the year."

Before anyone could comment, the doorbell rang. "He's here!" Grandma sauntered to the door in her matching gold gladiator flats. "Hello, Nero! You're just in time. Everyone this is Nero." Overall, he appeared pretty normal with the exception of looking like a slightly swollen golfer. His brown and green plaid pants were sitting too high for comfort, hence the belt cinched around the tan shirt was just below his armpits.

Grandma couldn't keep her eyes off his pants trying to figure out were the "woody" was hiding.

"May I be of assistance ma'am?" Nero asked Ms. Plum.

"Oh. Take in the gravy would you?"

Nero complied and grabbed the bowl of gravy off the counter, spilling it down his leg, but recovering. Bob was quickly on the scene. "Whoops!"

"Don't worry, it seems that Bob has cleaned it up." Stephanie said taking the gravy. "There's still plenty left. So what is it you do, Nero?"

"Not much anymore. Just go to the senior center and funeral home." He said slicking his eight black-dyed hairs back with a comb. Stephanie just smiled and sat down at the table.

During dinner Stephanie had to keep sending Bob away because he wouldn't leave Nero alone. Dessert was served and the table cleared when Bob decided to crawl under the table, his tail wagging against the tablecloth. Stephanie shook her head and listened to Grandma go off on a story about slots. Bob sneaked up on Nero and started licking his leg. Much to the horror of everyone, Bob bolted out from under the table running to the door.

"Oh my, god!" Stephanie gasped. Helen crossed herself.

Everyone turned to see Bob standing by the door wagging, an appendage hanging out of his mouth. He began shaking his head and gnawing on Nero's leg.

"Well," Nero began, "I guess it was bound to happen. It probably smells like gravy."

Stephanie got up from the table and wrestled the wooden leg out of Bob's mouth, finally returning it slightly chewed and slobber-free to Nero. Shortly after, Nero left and the house settled back down.

"I should have known it was too good to be true." Grandma Mazur said, disappointment in her voice. "How was I suppose to know that when he said he walked with a woody he meant he had a wooden leg?"

Stephanie took Nero's exit as the opportunity to excuse herself for the evening. Taking the bag of food offered by her mother she drove back to Joe's. It was early, but the events of the day had exhausted her. She decided to quit before things got worse and went to bed at eight. She awoke eleven hours later to an empty bed.

**Thanks to everyone that has been reading, it's going to be a wild ride**


	7. Chapter 7

"Joe?" Stephanie walked through the house. _'I'm pretty sure he was there last night. Right?'_ No one was home but Bob. She grabbed a bowl of cereal and sat in front of the television. Though it was early, she was feeling quite rested.

"…_Our sources say it occurred at 4 o'clock this morning. We are informed that there was one fatality and the suspect is still at large. He should be considered armed and dangerous."_ The newscaster concluded.

"This is Trenton. Aren't they always?" Stephanie mumbled with a full mouth of Frosted Flakes, pointing the spoon at the TV. "What else is new. This is why I don't watch the news." Stephanie prepared for the day and went through her skips. "What do you think, Bob? How about Pinkie?" Bob's lack of excitement mirrored Stephanie's own, but she grabbed her stuff and headed out anyway.

Stephanie headed east out of Hamilton Township to Pinkie's listed address. She pulled up to a modest one-story home. For as many houses that were on the block, the yards were quite spacious. Stephanie rang the doorbell and waited. An average looking and built man of about 38 answered the door. He was clean in dress and hygiene. His skin was lighter than Ranger's and his accent not quite Spanish with drawn out vowels. "Yes, Miss?"

"I'm bond enforcement with Vincent Plum Bonds. You missed your court date last week." Stephanie ran through her spiel.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I didn't realize. I thought it was tomorrow."

"If you come with me, we can go down to the station and you can get a new date."

"Ahh, and you would drive?" He inquired.

"Of course."

"Wait here and I will go grab my identification."

Stephanie stood on the porch while he went to the back room. She could hear rustling and muttering. "You doing okay in there Pinkie?"

"Just fine. One minute please."

Stephanie took interest in the tree next to her that was beginning to change to a vibrant yellow. After staring off into space she looked at her watch and realized she'd been there for ten minutes. "Pinkie?" No reply. She stepped into the house and continued to call. Nothing. "Shit." She muttered at the garage door opened to the back alley. "Every time."

Dejected, she kicked the door, surprisingly hard, and grimaced at the pain in her toe. She half limped/walked back to her car and drove to the office, stopping at Tasty Pastry. Connie was filing her nails and nearly ten o'clock was still too early for Lula.

"Bad morning already?" Connie asked eyeing the pastry box.

"Pinkie gave me the slip. He was so nice about it too!"

"Oh, well, go get Mo. Today's his cart cleaning day, so he'll be available. Hear anything new on Paige?"

"Nothing, I haven't even seen Joe today."

"I got nothing except what everyone else knows."

"Thanks, Connie. I'm off for Mo."

000000

"God, Walker, I'm fucking tired!" Morelli complained setting the file he had been looking at into his lap.

"Deal with it, Morelli. This is the last one. We're so close, then we can call it a day." Paige said scribbling hastily on an envelope.

"Nothing like calling it a day at ten in the morning."

"Technically the shift never ended." Paige tossed the file over Joe. He studied the case in front of him and the one Paige had thrown, doing a double take.

"What the…"

"That's what I thought." Paige agreed stretching, still in the same clothes from yesterday. "God, I stink. I'm ready to go home."

Morelli lifted and eyebrow. "And where's that?"

"Marriott downtown. I have until Friday to find a real place before the department stops paying. I got a few ideas, but I'll manage. So what do you think?" Walker asked nodding.

"I think in you should stay around here."

"No, Joe. What do you think about those two cases?"

"Oh! It's the same guy."

"My thoughts exactly. Let's get him so we can sleep." The detectives grabbed their guns and badges and took the beat up cop car. "Wow, this is quite the mobile."

"Yeah, we can't let the bad guys think the department has money." Morelli joked as they puttered out of the lot. "We gotta supply housing for new hires you know?"

Paige rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I never asked for it, it was offered. Besides, it's only for three nights. I'm sure I can find a living situation."

They drove down Halsey and got to the house they were looking for. Police backup already lined both sides of the street. "This is going to be easier than I thought. Bed is looking better by the minute." Morelli said walking over to the man in charge. "How's it going Marty?"

"We got the suspect surrounded, and we're getting ready to go in the back. It's all covered here Detective." He was a stout man with a barbell mustache that Morelli always thought looked way too Colonel Mustard.

"Great, we'll take off then. To the hotel, Walker?"

Joe and Paige drove in silence to the Marriott. He pulled into the parking lot and walked in with her. "Do you want to come up?"

"Nah, if I do, I'm sure I won't leave and I know my bed at home is a hell of a lot more comfortable than what they have here."

"Any messages for 1401?" Paige asked the desk clerk.

The mousy lady tapped a few buttons on the computer and then produced a piece of paper. "Just one ma'am."

"Thank you. So?"

"So, how about I pick you up tomorrow morning around eight? I could use a little bit of shuteye."

Paige nodded and walked to the elevator. Fourteen floors later, she was sliding her card into the door of her room. The light flashed green, but instead of going in, calling room service, and waiting for her coffee and food, she pocketed her key and went down to the bar. Fortunately the coffee was always readily available. She stood at the counter downing the fresh brew moaning with satisfaction. She sat at the bar and the friendly bartender slid her a coaster.

"Miss?"

"Good, morning. I'd just like some more coffee, a bowl of oatmeal, a raspberry scone, and an orange, please."

"Rough morning already?"

"That obvious?"

"Nah, that's only your fourth cup of coffee in ten minutes and you look like you already worked a full day. Sure you don't want something stronger?"

"Whatch ya got?" She said sliding her cup towards him. He smiled and filled her near empty mug with triple sec. Paige smiled and raised her cup to the bartender. Her food arrived and she ate greedily, feeling satisfied. For the second time that morning she took the elevator up to the fourteenth floor. Paige leaned her head against the door and counted on her fingers. "Thirty-one hours? That's not bad." She muttered to herself. "Who would have thought Trenton would be this wild?" She fished her key out of her jacket and waited for the green light to blink. She stripped down to her panties and silk camisole leaving a trail of clothes and shoes from the door to the bed. Many times before she had experienced long hours, but it had definitely been awhile and she was normally running on adrenaline. She hit the pillow and never looked back.

000000

"Mo?" Stephanie called from his row house porch. "It's Stephanie from Vincent Plum Bonds."

A rather large bellied man wearing a standard white hot dog apron came to the door. "The charge was bogus!" He yelled in a very heavy Italian accent swinging a sausage. Stephanie was dumbstruck as she stared at Mo wondering if he slept in his vending apron and if he always walked around with a chain of hot dogs in his hand.

"If you come down to the station with me then we can get you rebonded, you won't even miss work tomorrow."

"Don't you see, Fluffy…"

"Stephanie," She corrected him.

"I don't want to get rebonded, I want nothing! I will sue him! He hit my wiener stand!"

Stephanie's stomach growled as she was mesmerized by the twirling sausages. It was nearly noon and she was hungry. She thought for a moment and pulled out her phone. "Connie, is there a way maybe we can get Mickey to drop the charges on Mo? Uh huh. He wants to sue the department for damages to his cart. I suppose. Okay. Bye." She turned back to Mo. "Connie's going to see what she can do, but it's going to take at least a half hour."

"I see, Fluffnie,"

"Stephanie," She corrected him again.

"Well then, Muffy, how about you come in for some nice schnitzel? I just made some fresh sauerkraut."

'_Call me whatever you want!'_ Not one to give up free food, especially Mo's, Stephanie obliged and walked in to have lunch with Mo. "Sure! Muffy, Fluffy, What's the difference? I'd love some lunch."

Nearly two hours later Stephanie got the call from Connie. "Good news, Mo, Mickey dropped the charges."

"How wonderful, Fluffy! Those cops are all crooked anyway. Did you have to buy them off?"

"Actually, Connie reminded Mickey how embarrassing it would be to say he was assaulted by a hot dog, and she also told him that if it went to trial you would never serve any Trenton cops again. You can imagine his response to that one!" Mo walked Stephanie to the door. "Thanks for lunch Mo."

"Anytime you want, Fluffy! You just stop by my cart." He waved from the door and Stephanie climbed into her Corolla. Instead of looking for her other skip, she decided to go back to the office.

"Shit girl! You got free schnitzel? Damn!" Lula exclaimed from behind the desk.

"What are you doing back there, Lula? Are you…filing?"

"That's my job ain't it? My manicurist said I shouldn't be getting' no skips for two days. Said it's bad for the nails, more prone to breakage and all."

"I think I'm going to call it a day ladies. Tomorrow will be another day to find Pinkie and Donald."

"You want another? I got an easy bond for Darla Zantos. She's relatively harmless except she hit her husband with a frying pan."

"What's the bond?"

"Seventy-five hundred."

"Wow! Why so much?"

"She slapped the "babysitter" with it too."

Stephanie shrugged and took the folder. The more the drove back to Joe's house and saw his Explorer in the driveway. She walked in and Bob ran out, apparently he had been holding it for awhile. He bounced back in and Stephanie didn't see Joe on the sofa. "Joe?" She walked up to the bedroom and saw a lump under the sheets, but no movement, just deep snoring. Using the sensible Stephanie, she went downstairs and decided to watch _Ghostbusters_ before thawing the frozen lasagna. Bob enjoyed the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and she had to admit it made her hungry. Stephanie removed the lasagna from the freezer and popped it in the oven. "I'm such a domesticated goddess!" She said to Bob. "Thank you Bella."

Thirty minutes later the smell of tomato sauce filled the house and Joe stood at the foot of the stairs. "Hey, Cupcake."

"Joe! You're up."

"It was such a long day yesterday. What time is it?"

"Almost seven. How long have you been asleep?"

"Since ten. I assume you saw the news?" Stephanie nodded. "They just keep dying. You would think they would do it naturally, but no, they have to use weapons. I'm starved."

"You weren't home last night were you?"

"No, we got called out on that shooting, but there was one before that too."

After a rather silent meal, Joe excused himself back to bed muttering something about a hotel. Stephanie just nodded and went back to the TV, falling asleep with Bob before going upstairs. The beeping of an alarm woke Stephanie at 7:30. "What's going on, Joe?"

He was already dressed and leaning over her to turn the alarm off. "Got to go to work."

"At 7:30?"

"We decided to sleep in since we were up all night the day before." Giving her a kiss on the forehead and walking to the door.

That was the third time she had heard that word since last night, and knew she wasn't hearing things this time. "We?"

Joe stopped at the doorway. "Yeah, my partner."

"Partner?" She blinked blankly at him. "Since when have you ever had a partner?"

"Since Tuesday."

"Oh?"

"It's not that bad, Cupcake. I thought the same thing but it's actually better than I expected. I'm going to be late. See ya." With that Joe was out the door and gone.

Stephanie sat up in bed, "Wait…Tuesday?"

TBC? Thanks for reading! Hit the little button!


	8. Chapter 8

**As usual, I own no rights to anyone, except Paige Walker, but I would much rather own Ranger. Thank you to everyone that has been reading and faithfully reviewing!**

The banging on the door startled her awake. Paige grabbed her gun and walked to the door, confused. She yanked the door open and trained her gun to the head of the man on the other side.

"Geez, Walker! Do you always answer the door like that?"

The fog cleared and Paige realized who was standing there and what was happening, lowering her gun. "Joe? Oh, my god, you scared the shit out of me."

"I told you I would be here at eight. Is that the new uniform?" He asked with a grin.

Paige looked down and saw she was still in her underwear and camisole. "It's been worse, trust me." She turned around and walked back into the room, setting her gun on the nightstand. Joe cocked his head admiring her toned backside and long legs, his eyes resting on part of a tattoo peeking out from her panties. Aside from looking like the top of wings, he couldn't discern what it was but it made him smile nonetheless. "Let me shower. I'll only be a few minutes. Close the door will you?"

Joe walked in and sat in the chair at the desk. Nothing interested him, so he pulled out the _What to do in Trenton_ magazine and flipped through amusingly chuckling to himself. Paige emerged from the bathroom dressed casually but sleek. Her aqua boat neck sweater flattered her toned frame and flared jeans rested nicely on her gray and blue Nike's. She grabbed some bobby pins and pulled back the top of her hair that perfectly flipped out without a hair dryer.

"Anything interesting I should see?" Paige pulled Joe from his trance.

"Uh, the police station?"

"Smart ass. Let's blow this joint, I need some breakfast."

"You're in luck, I know just the place."

Consuming coffee and donuts at their desk, a knock on the wall brought Paige and Joe to attention. "Yeah?" Morelli inquired.

"Chief wants to see you." The messenger said. Joe raised his eyebrows. "Both of you." Paige put her file down and the detectives walked up stairs to the office and sat down in the wooden chairs across the desk.

"I'm impressed detectives." Larson began. "That was quite a takedown you instituted the other day. Not only that, you have already closed out seven cases."

"Thank you." Paige acknowledged.

"We have an informant gathering intel on a possible gun distributor. We won't have anything solid until Saturday at the earliest. Once the info is verified, I figured you both would want to be in on the raid."

"I think you thought right, Chief." Joe mumbled.

"Great work. Get back to it." Joe and Paige exited the office and walked back to the stairs.

"I'll run a check with my ATF guy to see if he has any new leads. He's been involved almost as long as I have." Paige stated flatly.

"_Your_ ATF guy?" Joe asked as he opened the stairwell door for Paige.

"It shouldn't surprise you that I still have connections Joe. This case has been around for a few years. His name's Slater."

"Huh, that's were I live. We should talk about Miami sometime?"

"All in good time. Let's review these cases again, we've got to be missing something. I'll feel better about dedicating more time to the weapons shootings once we clear a few more out."

"A few more it is. Then break for lunch."

"Only a short one, I got a feeling we're going to push through a few of these. There's a girl that I want to talk to on one of the cases, we should be able to get to her tomorrow."

"On the Glametta case?" Joe asked.

"That's the one."

"Tomorrow. Files and lunch first."

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"Yes?"

"Change of plans, Tank." Ranger's voice came through the phone receiver. "Atlanta was a phone check. Put them on the schedule for next month."

"Boss?"

Ranger was silent. "Certain…items needed my undivided attention in Miami. Pick me up tonight at 1900."

'_Damn._' Tank thought looking around the control room. "Look alive boys! Bossman at 1900."

To Tank's surprise, his phone went off again. He looked at the caller id and smirked. "Bombshell. Sure, but after 8 o'clock."

000000

Two sleek black SUV's waited outside the terminal in Newark. Lester, Zip, and Bobby stoically waited for their signal to move. That sign came in the form of a black clad austere faced man walking through the doors.

"Shit, man." Lester whispered. "Too bad I'm driving." Bobby smirked and snorted, recovering quickly as Ranger approached. He nodded to his men and Bobby and Zip went to the front car, Ranger climbed in with Lester.

"Report."

"No activity, Boss. And your inquiries?"

Ranger eyed him and turned his attention to the road ahead. "Taken care of."

Lester nodded and eased into the zone. Piercing rings came from both men's phones disturbing their transportation trances.

"Talk." Ranger said curtly.

"Property disturbance at account R90's 1500 building." Tank came over the speaker.

"We're on it now." Both cars screeched off the turnpike at the next exit flying through town. When they arrived, the cops were already lighting up the street and wandering around with their dogs. The black vehicles stopped short of the police barricade and the four men walked over to the one looking in charge.

Armand Gamache was familiar with Rangeman and nodded at the figures walking his way. '_My god they are always so massive!'_

"What happened?" Ranger inquired.

"Appears we had a shoot out. Three victims, two dead- over there," he pointed behind him and kept talking, "and some building damage. This one is yours correct?" Ranger looked at the building and nodded. "The front window was shot out setting off your alarms. At this time of night, I'm surprised more people weren't around and someone didn't call the cops."

Ranger smiled internally amused by the ineptness of the police department. "Anything interesting on the bodies?"

"We won't know until we have forensics run the casings, but I'm pretty sure it involves the Special Artillery shit on the market. Detectives Morelli and Walker," Armand pointed over his shoulder, "are trying to make headway on the cases. Complete inundation."

Ranger followed his finger and immediately recognized the back view and red hair standing over the deceased. "Shit." He whispered. Paige was standing with her hands on her hips talking to Joe pointing around at the crime scene. She turned around motioning down the street and froze. Staring.

Morelli noticed her pause and looked up. "Walker?"

"Shit." Paige inhaled.

"Walker? You got something else?"

Paige's green eyes refocused and she was pulled from a flashback of images. Morelli observed Paige and her demeanor then followed her gaze, he too going stony. "Paige."

"Nothing, Joe. Are we done here guys?" To the coroner and forensics guys. They gave her an affirmative and she walked in the direction of the Ranger, stopped by the tug on her arm.

"What's the deal, Walker?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to check with the inspector on a few things."

Joe eyed her suspiciously. "Fuck, you know Manoso." More of a statement than a question. Paige just stared at him. "Whatever. You want a ride?"

Before Paige could object, she decided against it when she saw that Ranger and the rest of men in black were gone. She searched the street but knew they were already gone. "Yeah. Let's get out of here. It's going to be hell tomorrow."

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Ranger was in the zone, but Lester was privy to know he was not a happy person. They pulled into Rangeman and unloaded his bag. A silence fell across the control room floor as the elevator doors opened. Everyone from the first shift was still on duty due to Ranger's shortened trip. Instead of addressing anyone or thing, Ranger walked straight back to the break room. Tank took cue and followed slowly behind.

"Bossman?"

Ranger looked up at Tank. "I was hungry."

"I wasn't asking for justification, man."

"It's nearly nine, what are you still doing here?"

"Overtime, Boss."

Ranger smirked at him and slapped a friendly hand on his arm, walking to the door.

"I hear your lady's in town for good."

Ranger turned abruptly and Tank could feel the daggers stabbing his soul. "We best watch ourselves then."

"Tank, I got some information, but…" Came a voice from the doorway turning both men's attention.

"Babe?"

"Uhhh…uhh. I, um, I…Ranger?"

"What are you doing here so late, Babe." Eyeing suspiciously the folder in her hands.

"Well, I, um, I asked Tank if I could get, or rather, I needed…" Stephanie tripped over her words looking uncomfortable and turning the file over in her hands. Ranger just looked at her waiting. "Well, I didn't know you were back."

"Babe, you're always welcome here, you know that."

Stephanie took a deep breath and sighed. "Well, I think I should let you two talk or something. You know, things to catch up on." Ranger just kept staring, giving nothing away. Stephanie nervously handled her folder dropping it. The papers slipped out and slid across the floor. "Oops! I got it!" She hurriedly began gathering papers, Ranger stooped to help her, but Stephanie quickly gathered them and stood. "I'll, uh, catch you later!" She bolted for the elevator. "Thanks, Tank." The doors closed and Stephanie leaned her head against the wall. "Oh, my god!" Stephanie began ranting to herself in the elevator pushing the button for the garage.

"What was that about, Tank?" Ranger asked.

"Bombshell said she needed to run a more in depth search so I told her to come by after eight."

"Did she say who or why?"

"Figured it didn't matter, Boss. Never has."

Ranger saw a stray piece of paper under a chair. He retrieved it and felt his stomach tighten. "Perhaps, this time it does." Disaster was in the making. He ran through the control room and quickly downstairs. "Disable the gate!"

Stephanie could not figure out why the gate was still down. Frustrated, she searched for the fob in her purse, and her car stalled. Swearing she found the fob and tried to start her shit mobile screaming at the sight of Ranger standing directly in front of her car.

"I see we have a problem."

"Problem, Ranger? The only problem I see is my car stalling and the gate not working." Ranger leaned into her window and brought his lips to her ear and whispered two words.

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	9. Chapter 9

**Just in case it isn't obvious, I felt that this chapter needed to go between the conversation of Paige/Joe and Ranger/Steph so it is broken up that way. Let me know what you think! Thank you for all your reviews!**

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"Paige Walker."

Stephanie just sat there blinking and finally got out of her car. "I'm sorry, Ranger. I just sort of freaked out. This woman shows up out of the blue from Miami and suddenly Joe's out all the time, and he's home late, and he says that now they are partners, and then…"

"Partners?"

"Yeah, I found that out this morning. It's been a strange few days. Ever since her arrival, everyone's been on edge."

"And this?" Taking the file from Stephanie's hand.

"I just wanted to know who she was."

"Babe,"

"Well, but then when I was running the searches here I pulled up a lot of information, and you came up down in Miami, and then it wasn't about Joe anymore it was about…" Stephanie rambled but stopped when Ranger held his hand up.

"Let's go upstairs and have Ella bring us some dinner. I'll tell you everything."

Stephanie agreed and thought about her car. "I'll have it taken care of, Babe." _'Damn, ESP.'_ Ranger grabbed her hand and led her to the elevator.

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Joe and Paige drove in silence the short distance to the hotel. He pulled up in front and parked turning to look at her. "You want to tell me what's going on?"

"In regards to what, Joe?"

"Manoso."

"I'm not sure what you are implying."

"Never mind." Joe sighed and threw his arms up. "See you tomorrow." Paige climbed out of the SUV and watched Joe drive away, turning back to the hotel. He drove back to his house and found it empty. Deciding he wasn't tired but in fact antsy, he went back to the station to look over some files. He nodded at the front desk and went down to the lower sanctum. Though the piles were out of control, Joe found them somewhat comforting. He had been working for about two hours when he heard soft footsteps stop in front of his desk. His heartbeat quickened slightly. "What are you doing here?"

"We should probably talk." Paige said sitting down.

Joe folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair, "I'm all ears."

Paige began.

"I first met Carlos when I was working vice. We were getting in over our heads, just like now, when the whole weapons thing started. I was basically the second in command so I acted as the information liaison between agencies. We needed something more that was not governmental, so I tapped RangeMan. I figured they would be a good fit because there was just too much emotion involved and too many people. Getting an outside perspective would have been a huge benefit to us and with RangeMan's resume, they were the premier. But Carlos said no."

"What else is new? I wouldn't have expected anything less. So?"

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Ranger and Stephanie finished their brown rice with steamed vegetables and Ranger directed her to the sofa. Stephanie glanced at the file she had placed on the coffee table and looked back and Ranger. He held her stare and flipped the folder open, revealing a news headline complete with a picture. "Is that why you ran, Babe?" Stephanie nodded. "And she is this why you wanted to meet with me on Sunday?" Stephanie nodded again. Ranger studied her. "You should have told me, Babe. I can't ever get mad at you, you shouldn't have felt like you had to hide your intentions or runaway. You really want to know about her?"

Stephanie contemplated this, she had never asked or pried information before from Ranger. "Ranger, only if you want. I know how sometimes things are…well, secretive I guess, and I don't want to ask you to divulge things you want to keep to yourself."

"I'm sure that Morelli is going to hear it from Paige, so it is only fair to you that you know what's going on, Babe. If you want to know, just ask."

"Well then, Ranger, I think I do."

"RangeMan is about security and efficiency and we pick our battles when it comes to the police. Occasionally we work with them, but usually if it benefits us and doesn't bring the media. I try to keep RangeMan out of the public eye. Paige was working vice in Miami when the PD first encountered the issue with these illegal arm sales. Paige came to us to have a private corporation assist with their investigation. Miami office ran it through me, and I didn't like the idea of being involved. The whole thing seemed really off to me, so I told her no.

"Again, Paige asked. This time I flew down and met with her to reiterate my feelings of unease about the contract and our firm stance against involvement. Apparently that still didn't deter her. Over the course of the next five months, RangeMan was giving Miami PD information and intel on possible leads."

"But you just said you didn't want to get involved."

"I did. But I was not aware of this until I went back to Miami to check on RangeMan. The bitch was sleeping with my brother to get access to RangeMan."

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"You used his brother as leverage? Shit Paige! That's the most brilliant thing I've ever heard! Manoso was probably pissed he never thought of it!" Joe exclaimed.

"Well, you wouldn't have thought it was brilliant, because it didn't end up rosy. Carlos confronted me about it and I explained that everything was legitimate and I really liked his brother, but he was furious because he felt used. For several months after, Carlos would "monitor" me sporadically."

"Monitor?"

"Yeah, just checking up on our information and making sure that his office didn't supply anything. However, during my time with his brother, I found information that we believed linked their cousin to a drug operation. Boy were we wrong. We went in for a bust and walked right into Carlos and his team doing a "house redecorating." They came out totally clean and justifiable and we got slapped with a black mark. Carlos was upset that we were there trying implement his cousin and it turned out that all our information was bogus. After that fizzled in our face, I broke off all connections with Carlos, RangeMan, and his brother. From there, we just focused on our agencies and what we had available."

"Do you think RangeMan fed you botched information?"

"I'm not sure, but it was awfully suspicious."

Joe picked up Paige's hand and squeezed it, leaning into her. "I guess it's a good thing you're in Trenton, because this is Manoso's hub. We'll figure it out because we're good, huh?" He said nudging her.

"Yeah, we're good." She said smiling.

Joe stood up, "How about some good coffee, not this office shit?"

"At this hour?" Paige said looking at her watch. "It's after midnight."

"And you still need a ride back, and I'm not tired. Let's go."

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"Ranger, that's terrible! So this article then," Stephanie began, pointing to the coffee table with the headline showing a picture of Ranger and Miami RangeMan being escorted by Miami PD and Paige, "was after the decorating job, and…"

"And we were never indicted. It was the first time that local police almost got to book me." Ranger said slightly cynical. "They arrested us and made a big deal of escorting us out of the building to show the media their success. Unfortunately for them it backfired."

"But that was good for you. What happened after the decorating job incident foiled?" Stephanie asked.

"I had a few words with Paige and she stepped away from everything associated with me. The information she received on my cousin was 100% false. The whole operation was foul from the beginning. I have thought for some time that whoever gave them information was trying to set us or me up to look bad or take a fall for the department."

"What have you done about it since?"

"Nothing, and I'm going to keep it that way. Especially since the situation moved up to Trenton. Like I said Babe, something is off, and when this whole investigation crashes I have a feeling that some serious bureaucratic bullshit is going to transpire. I didn't want RangeMan involved because I don't trust the involved institutions. If there's anyone who knows how dirty the government agencies work, it's me. We have no ties with their investigation. Until tonight, I hadn't seen or heard from Paige in over three months. But she's here now chasing the Miami guns."

Stephanie got lost in thought staring at Ranger. She sighed and began to apologize for jumping to conclusions, but Ranger stopped her as he swiped a strand of hair off her face, his touch sending chills straight through her body to her pelvis, "You should be going home, Babe."

"My car is kind of incapacitated and I'm suppose to track down Pinkie and Donald tomorrow."

"Pinkie and Donald? Donald Creto? Do you want me to send Hal with you?"

"No, I'll be fine."

"Be careful, I'll have a car for you tomorrow. Let's get you home, I don't want Morelli getting suspicious when his girlfriend gets home after midnight with my car." Stephanie had to smile at this. Ranger was always so attentive. "I'd feel safer taking you home."

"Thanks, Ranger, I am really exhausted." Stephanie said taking his hand and walking to the door.

They made it down to the garage and eased into the Turbo, Stephanie inhaling its scent. Before Ranger even pulled out of RangeMan, Stephanie had already dozed off. Ranger's lips curved into a small smile at the sight of her. As he drove through Trenton on autopilot, he stopped at a red light and narrowed his eyes. There in the window of a café were Morelli and Paige. The light turned green and instead of going straight, he turned right. Ranger pulled up and opened the car door for Stephanie, but she didn't even twitch an eye open or skip a beat breathing. He removed her from the car and carried her upstairs to the dark room and empty bed. He laid her on the bed and locked the door behind him. Stephanie woke to the ringing of her phone, sprawled out starfish style in bed. "Hello?"

"Cupcake?"

"Joe? What time is it?"

"Just before four."

"In the morning?"

"Yeah, in the morning. What are you doing?"

"I'm sleeping, at least I was sleeping. Isn't that what you do at this hour?"

"Apparently so. I just let Bob out."

"That's nice." Stephanie said sleepily turning over.

"Stephanie?"

Though she was incredibly groggy, Stephanie refocused and looked around. There was silence on the phone, then Joe's voice broke through the receiver, "Where are you?"

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Hmmm…What do you think? Where should she be? This chapter was originally really long, so I decided to break it down into two, so the next one will be much longer- sorry for the cliff! :D


	10. Chapter 10

**Wow thanks for all the support! This chapter contains some language thanks for reviewing!**

Oh yeah, and I don't own anyone, but I do have a standing arrangement with Ranger. Paige Walker is my own character bless her heart.

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Confused at his question, Stephanie realized the familiarity she saw was not Joe's house. "Uh, my apartment?"

"Your apartment?"

"Yeah, my apartment. Wait. You are just now wondering where I am?"

"Cupcake, I just got home."

Stephanie shrugged and turned over. "Well, I guess it's a good thing I'm not there to hog the bed. I'll see you tomorrow for breakfast okay? Feed Rex."

"Alright, 10 o'clock, Tasty Pastry." Joe hung up the phone and felt particularly fuming. He looked at Bob. "How could she be so nonchalant?" Bob just wagged. "That's what I thought, Buddy. Let's get some sleep.

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Stephanie went through her morning routine and decided it just wasn't the same without Rex. She knew she didn't have a whole lot of clothes to wear left in her apartment, especially clean ones, so she was pleasantly surprised to find a set of clothes clean and folded on the chair in her bedroom. The ivory cashmere cowl neck sweater was luxurious and below that was a pair of blue jeans. She smiled as she noticed the pair of black panties lying on top of the jeans. Picking them up, she shook her head as she slipped on the RangeMan embroidered underwear. She grabbed her bag and files on Pinkie and Donald then decided to grab Darla too. As she went to open the door she stopped remembering she didn't have a car. "Damn." She reached into her purse to retrieve her phone and pulled out a set of keys. She smiled to herself and walked out to the parking lot knowing she would find a new shiny black car. Sure enough, a black BMW X6 sat patiently, waiting to go to Tasty Pastry.

Stephanie saw Joe sitting on a stool at the counter eyeing the beamer as it pulled to the curb. As she stepped out and walked to the door, she saw him pop a Tums. Sashaying up to him, she pulled up a stool and grabbed a donut. "Hey."

"God, Steph, I see you had car problems."

Grabbing a glob of raspberry filling before it hit the table, Stephanie nodded. "Mm hmm. Broke down at RangeMan."

"RangeMan?"

"Yeah, I was doing some searches. You?"

"Got another case to cover. Damn dead bodies all over the place. Found one stuck in a tree. You seem particularly chipper this morning, Cupcake. Good night?"

"It was decent, I missed Rex. You?"

"It was definitely too short." Joe checked his watch. "I gotta go. I'll see you later tonight?"

"I'll be there."

Joe left in his car and Stephanie made sure there was no powder sugar on her as she got into hers. '_First stop Donald. Then Pinkie, you slippery bastard.'_ Stephanie drove to Donald's house and found it, all dilapidated and looking to be condemned. Stephanie parked right up front to keep watch on Ranger's car and knocked on the door to be greeted by Donald's less than thrilled girlfriend. She looked like a kickback from the 80's. Stephanie thought _her_ hair was bad, but yikes!

"What do you want?" She smacked her gum leaning on the paint stripped door as she checked out Stephanie.

"My name is Stephanie."

"Uh, huh."

"I'm from Donald's bail bond office."

"So, you ain't a cop right?"

"Right."

"And you ain't here to arrest him right?"

"Right." _'Just take him to jail, but you don't need to know that.'_

"And your car's too nice. You a dealer?"

"Should I be?"

His girlfriend was swaying uneasily. "Whatdya want with Donny?"

"He missed his court date." Stephanie explained.

"He ain't home."

"I see. Do you know when he'll be back?"

"Don't know."

"Well, do you know where he is?"

"He said something about checking his supply."

"As in drugs?"

"Hey, if he was into that stuff, I wouldn't be talkin' to you."

"He was arrested for jaywalking naked! Not possession." Stephanie exclaimed.

"Yeah, that was a bad day. Apparently he didn't do what he's suppose to, so some dude he met with at a bar took all his shit and kicked him out onto the street. Fortunately it wasn't too cold. Too bad the cops had to pick him up, he just had too far to walk."

"Is he there now?"

"Don't know." She smacked her gum again.

"What is it called?"

"Don't know. It's that bar with the flashing titties. Real classy."

"Will he be home later?"

"Maybe later, maybe not." Popping a bubble and smacking it.

"Well, just let him know that I stopped by." Stephanie left a card with the girlfriend and decided to head off to Pinkie's. Back in the BMW she pulled out her phone.

"Yo,"

"Yo, yourself. Do you know anything about a bar with a flashing boobs sign?" Silence filled the car. "Well?"

"I'll see what I can do." Ranger hung up staring at his phone, then looked around the control room. "Lester!"

"Bossman?" Lester approached slightly startled.

"Get me information on a bar with…" Ranger cleared his throat, "with a flashing breasts marquis."

Lester's mouth turned into a huge grin. "_Tips 'n Tits_, Boss." Ranger just stared, his blank face betrayed by his chastising eyes.

"I knew it wouldn't take _you _long to identify the bar. Information. Now."

"Right up, Rangeman." Lester walked away, the smile still plastered on his face.

Stephanie arrived at Pinkie's place and as she pulled up to the curb, she saw the drapes flutter. "Pinkie!" Stephanie yelled as she banged on the door. "I know your routine this time so open the door!"

"Stephanie." Came his drawn out vowel melting pot accent. "I'm sorry I gave you the slip, but I could not go down with you. I need another three days." Pinkie said from the doorway, swiping his damp bangs across his forehead.

"Three days! Why three days? It's not going to take that long. Your bond is only good for another 10 days. How do I know you won't give me the slip?" Stephanie inquired arms folded across her chest.

"If I don't take myself in next week, I will graciously go with you. Deal?"

Stephanie looked at the extended hand and shook it. "Fine. You better not stiff me."

Pinkie nodded and closed the door. _'Damn, 0 for 2. I'm just too nice. Maybe I'll have better luck with Darla.'_ Stephanie thought as she drove away, dialing into her phone.

"What's happening, girl?" Lula answered.

"You up for getting a skip?"

"Hmm, I don't know, there's an awful lot of filing here."

"I'll drive."

"In your piece of shit car? Girl you crazy, you know it's bad for my image!"

"My car sort of broke down."

"So you want me to pick yo' ass up, is that what this is about?"

"No, I'll drive."

"Oh, heeeelll no! I ain't driving in that blue armored truck, that old Buick is worse than your shit Yota!"

Stephanie paused and smiled to herself. "I sort of got a loaner."

"Uh, huh probably that purple piece of shit again, it'll clash with my eye makeup today."

"No. It's black."

"Ooo! Wait! You got a bat mobile?"

"Yeup."

"Hurry yo ass up and get here! Then we can get lunch, I'm thinking Cluck-in-a-Bucket."

Stephanie pulled up to the bonds office and met the excited faces of Connie and Lula. "Ooo, girl look what you drivin'! I love them beamers!" Lula exclaimed bending over the couch as she looked out the window. Stephanie and Connie cringed as visions of Little Miss Muffet in polka dot spandex unfolded before them.

"Ranger's back early." Connie started the conversation.

"Mmm hmm. Turns out our girl tried to utilize RangeMan Miami when this whole thing unraveled a few years ago."

"No kidding. I figured Ranger would bring something up on her. What else did you get."

Stephanie went off on the story of Paige asking Ranger for help but excluded the information of Ranger's brother and the part about RangerMan employees getting arrested. Basically leaving all the juicy stuff out of the conversation.

"If I was Batman, I wouldn't have given her information either." Lula stated.

"And why's that, Lula?" Connie asked.

"Cuz' women like that always got an…an…uh, you know, alterderrière motive."

Connie and Stephanie just smiled chuckling. "Shall we go?" Stephanie said.

"We shall, smart ass. Let's go for a drive!"

"Where you girls heading?" Connie asked.

"Darla's." They waved to Connie exiting the bonds office and Lula bounced to the beamer, crawled in, and began stroking the leather. "Ooo. This is so nice! A girl could use to that Ranger scent!" Stephanie blushed at this comment and started the car heading for the giant rotating chicken.

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It was nearly noon and Paige and Morelli were sitting at Morelli's desk contemplating three cases. Frustrated, Paige tossed a file onto the desk and leaned back, draining her coffee cup. "I don't get it, Joe." Morelli looked up over his file signaling he was listening. "These files are all pointing to the same perp, but there's no solid MO. Ballistics confirm the same weapon, but we still don't have a lead."

"What about that gal you wanted to talk to? The one you think is linked to the Glametta case?"

Paige looked at her watch and then Morelli. "Yeah, I suppose. I was thinking about maybe doing that tomorrow?"

"You said that yesterday."

"I guess we can go today. I'm just so damn tired. Every night it's another dead body. Go die somewhere else! Maybe this gal will give us something to work with. What's her name?"

Joe looked through a file and found her picture. "Yikes! She looks like a kickback from _Quiet Riot _and _Def Leopard_." He showed Paige the picture and she cringed. "Her name is Tonya Mills."

"Wow! We can hit up ol' Cindy Lauper there after lunch." Joe nodded and held up a bag. "What's that?"

"Leftovers."

Morelli and Paige drove to the north end of Stark Street. The found the house number, parking in front. "What a rundown piece of shit." Paige commented as she stepped out of the beat up cop car placing her gun in the back waistband of her pants. "Your cop car fits in so well, maybe I should go house hunting. Looks to be a few vacancies, what do you think, Joe?"

"I think that you would need to get a new partner. Someone who wouldn't care if you lived in this neighborhood." Joe surveyed the area and pocketed his badge and identification. Paige raised her eyebrows at this. "I remember it when it's important, otherwise, I just barge in." They walked up the one step and knocked on the door, taken back at the sight before them. The woman was even more frightening than her picture; bad 80's rock was banging in the background.

"Yeah?" She said with a slight slur, leaning uneasily against the door.

"Good afternoon, Miss." Paige began. "Are you Tonya Mills?"

"What's it to ya?"

"We're looking for Donald Creto."

"Yeah, you and everyone else. 'Cept you guys look like cops. And I don't talk to no cops."

"We are detectives with Trenton PD." Joe said showing his badge. "What do you mean everyone else?"

"Some lady showed up here earlier lookin' for Donny." Paige and Joe exchanged glances.

"What kind of lady?" Joe pried.

"I told ya, I don't talk to cops!" Tonya said stepping back.

"Was she involved with Donny?" Paige asked smoothly.

"Listen, lady. I'm the only one for Donny! Just cuz some lady comes 'round here don't mean he's spankin' on the side! Besides, he don't go for beamers, he's all about American!" Tonya finished her tirade and slammed the door.

"Fuck." Joe spit through clenched teeth.

"Does that mean something to you, Joe?"

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Stephanie and Lula managed to track down Darla's residence and ended up having a discussion through the locked bathroom door.

"Come on, Darla! You just need to get a new date!" Stephanie yelled.

"No! That bastard doesn't deserve shit, even that's too good for him!" She screamed through the door.

"I think you was completely justified, girl!" Lula said licking some chicken bits off her fingers.

"Really?"

"My man's creepin' with the babysitter? Oh, hell no! Where are your kids?"

"Umm. We don't have any." Came the reply through the door.

"What! Than what the hell was she doing in your house, woman?"

"She was suppose to baby sit our canary. She always wore this feather boa and bikini because she said Peety would sing and was more calm."

Lula turned to Stephanie and said in a hushed voice, "Is she for real?" Stephanie shrugged. "What a dumbass." Back to the door "Darla, you the bomb! I would have beat her with a pan, then stuffed her, and roasted her. She probably got crabs and shit."

"I'm still not going!"

"But you broke her nose, you got your revenge! Stand tall, bitch!" This got no response from Darla.

"I think you pissed her off, Lula." Stephanie said putting her ear to the door. "Darla? We'll take you down to the station in a BMW." Still nothing. Stephanie shook her head at Lula. Then they heard the lock click.

"Really?" Darla said poking her head out.

"I'll even let you ride shotgun!" Lula blurted throwing her arm around Darla's shoulders, pulling her out into the entryway. "We'll take you wherever you want. Right, Steph?" Stephanie nodded as they walked to the car. "How about some donuts?"

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By the time Darla was at the station and Lula and Stephanie left, it was close to six. "Hmmph. That wasn't so bad was it?"

Stephanie just stared, "I didn't think we would need to go to Point Pleasant to get cotton candy."

"Yeah, but that car sure drives, don't it?"

Stephanie sighed in agreement. She dropped Lula off at the bonds office to pick up her car and drove back to Morelli's. The house was dark and Bob's bladder was full, so they went for a short walk then came back and made peanut butter and potato chip sandwiches for her and Bob. As she sat down to watch television, Joe walked in. Stephanie turned around, "Hey! Your finally home."

"Hey, Cupcake." He said grabbing a beer from the fridge. "Noticed your car in the driveway. Busy day?"

"Sort of. I caught a skip." Steph said proudly.

"Donald?"

"No, Darla."

"What about Donald?" Joe took a long swig of the bottle.

"I don't know, maybe tomorrow when I get some more information."

"More information?"

"Yup, from Ranger."

Joe choked on his beer and wiped his mouth. "What kind of information?"

"I was going to RangeMan today, but Darla was an all day event, so I asked him to for some additional information to track him down. That's all."

"Cupcake, you're holding out on me. We went to Tonya's today and…" Joe's phone rang, dancing on the table. He picked it up and swore. "Yeah? Seriously, now? Fine." He hung up and left his beer on the table. "I gotta get back, another idiot wound up dead."

"I guess I won't wait up." He kissed her on the head and made for the door. "So much for that, huh, Bob?" Stephanie watched television for awhile longer until she awoke on the sofa to an infomercial signaling for her to go to bed.

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The police were all huddled trying to stay warm. "Come on! It's two in the morning, when are we going to wrap this up?" Joe bellowed. "I'm freezing my ass off."

"That's a lot of freeze, Detective." Paige said sipping her coffee, handing it off to Joe. "Here. Wouldn't want that fine specimen to disappear."

"This is the third night this week, Paige."

"And complaining isn't going to do anything to fix it or make it better. So shut the hell up!"

Joe grinned and raised the cup to Paige. "We're in for a long one tonight. Did anybody find his leg yet?"

"No, but at least this one isn't gun related. Scotty said he found already found a hand."

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Stephanie's phone rang at seven dragging her from sleep. "Yeah?"

"You always sound so bright eyed at this hour, Babe."

"I'm not an early riser, Ranger. You should know never to call me this early."

"I'd need you down at RangeMan."

"When?"

"Now."

"What! Come on Ranger! How about nine or ten?"

"I have your information."

"Fine. But I expect breakfast."

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Joe pulled into the parking lot of the Marriott and waved good-bye to Paige, barely noticing the door close. Paige checked the desk, then took the elevator up to the fourteenth floor. Again a slave to the green light, she focused her eyes on the doorknob and obediently turned the handle. "What in the name of hell?" Paige stood in the doorway looking into the room. "Fuck me."

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Joe Morelli had been dead-to-the-world asleep for eight minutes when his phone rang jerking him awake into an angry stupor until it went to voicemail. He pulled his pillow over his head and rolled over. Again, the phone rang. "Seriously!?" He reached over and turned it to vibrate, only to see the phone generating on the nightstand. "Holy, hell, I'm trying to sleep! What the fuck do you want?" Joe yelled into the phone.

"Tell me about it."

"Walker?"

"I'm just as tired as you Joe."

"It's eight o'clock in the morning, you should be sleeping."

"I have a slight problem with my bed."

"There are many things I could say to that, but I'm too tired to be witty."

"There's a man in it."

This slightly alerted Morelli. "That could be a good thing, but I suggest you ask him to leave."

"'Fraid it's not that easy, Joe."

"Why's that?"

"He's dead."

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So? What do you think so far? Things are going to get a little dicey. Thank you to all who review and PM me! It's so encouraging!


	11. Chapter 11

***I'm so grateful for all your feedback and reviews! The Turkey weekend prolonged my chapter- thank you all for reading and reveiwing!***

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Given that he had fallen "asleep" with his clothes on, Joe arrived with two steaming coffee cups in hand and eyes bloodshot within twenty minutes. The blues were swarming like ants all over the fourteenth floor, and all guests on that level had been moved to other floors, given they didn't check-out early. Joe walked to Paige's room and nodded to Carl Costanza as he slipped under the crime tape. Walking to the bed, he less than admired the sight before him. The body lay in a crimson mess with the white hotel sheets stained bright scarlet as the blood spread through the fibers, soaking through.

"Where's the head?" Joe asked, looking around unfazed.

"They already packed it off." Paige said walking over, greedily taking the offered coffee cup. "Can you believe this mess?"

"They already packed it off?" Joe reiterated as a question.

"Yeah, the head was sitting over on the windowsill. It appears that the dead body was transported here with the head attached and then for fun and fucking games they chopped the head off on my bed. Lovely, huh?"

Joe just stared shaking his head. "Any ID on the victim?"

"Nope."

"Why you?"

"I ask myself the same question every day." Paige remarked drinking the coffee.

"No, I mean, why would they pick you to deposit a dead body on?"

"I don't' know, Joe, but I'm sure whoever did it had a logical reason, don't they all?" She said sarcastically. "Hey," she called out to anyone that would listen, "how much longer we got here guys?"

Arnie walked over to her and handed her a clipboard. "A little bit Detective."

"Jesus, Arnie, I'm so tired, and I don't have any place to sleep right now. I'm sure housekeeping is going to have a fit when they see this."

"Sorry, but you know very well it will be at least three more hours. When we get the body moved and finish taking pictures, you can gather your stuff together and move downstairs."

Paige looked at him with more shock than she wished to display. "Arnie, this guy violated my space! There is no security camera footage showing anyone dragging a dead body up the elevator or making unauthorized entry into my room. It's like the guy was rolled in on a fucking food cart!" Arnie looked at her in surprise turning to speak into his radio. Paige's tirade caused everyone in the room to stop what they were doing. She looked around at all the faces and swiped a red strand of hair out of her eyes taking in a deep breath. Arnie was still on the radio and Morelli grabbed her by the arm and escorted her out of the room to the other end of the hall.

"Come here, sit down." Joe let go of her arm and she slid down the wall resting her head on her knees taking deep breaths.

"God, Joe." Paige sighed leaning her head on the wall.

"I know it's frustrating, Paige. I'd feel violated too."

"It's more than that! I've seen more dead bodies than I know what to do with. I'm just pissed off that this guy was in my bed! I am so tired. It's been almost a week and there are more bodies lying around than we know what to do with. It was never this bad in Miami this quick. These people are dropping like flies and it's only going to get worse. I'm positive that something huge is transpiring." She finished shaking her head.

Joe squatted down before her and looked into her sleepy green eyes. "It would appear that way. But it's not going to do any good until we get the victim identified."

Just then Arnie Rupp arrived and cleared his throat. "I think you may be on to something Detective."

"What's that Arn?" Joe said.

"Obviously the body was snuck into the room and we aren't looking in the right place. I won't be surprised if it was hotel staff." With that, Arnie turned and walked back to the crime scene.

" Paige, you find a place to live yet?" Joe asked.

"Not exactly. There was this old lady that I was going to rent the bottom of her place, but it's not available for another week or so. I was just going to stay here for a few more days, but after this…" She trailed off and closed her eyes.

Joe placed his hands on her shoulders and she looked up and smiled. "I have an extra room if you're interested."

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The control room at RangeMan was buzzing more than normal. No one was out in the field this morning due to the activity over the police scanners. Stephanie and Ranger were in a conference room with Donald's information spread across the table. Holding true to Stephanie's request, Ranger sat watching Stephanie busily finish a veggie egg white omelet with a side of turkey bacon, courtesy of Ella. The door opened and Lester walked in. "Hey, Beautiful!" Stephanie looked up and nodded licking her fingers as she turned her attention to the table. "Looks like the decapitated victim is hanging out in our lady friend's hotel room, Boss." Ranger tilted his head in interest. "Marriott downtown room 1401. She's not a suspect. Found him this morning at 0800."

"Wait, did she wake up next to him or something?" Stephanie asked suddenly interested.

"Not exactly, Bomber. Says here Walker opened her door, no sign of forced entry, and saw the body taking a headless nap on her bed and window." Lester said reading the report print out.

"I see. Late night I guess." Stephanie said, turning her attention to Ranger.

"I don't think this involves us at the moment, Santos. You can check that later, run it through Tank. I want you to brief this report for Stephanie on Donald Creto." Ranger said disinterested. He sat down next to Stephanie and lightly placed his hand on her shoulder, turning her towards the first report. Lester nodded and began.

"Your man Donald was hanging out at this bar called _Tips 'n Tits._ Pretty risqué for being so close to the Hamilton Township area. There are some questionable people that hang out there and it looks like Donald had been frequenting the bar there for several months. A little out of his way actually."

"Maybe he didn't want Tonya to know. She's a piece of work." Stephanie said picking up the paper with the bar information.

"I don't think so, Beautiful. This place is great for checking out the dancers," Ranger shot him a glare, but Lester continued, "but it use to be a speakeasy back in the day, so it has a lot of private areas as well to conduct shoddy business."

"So, you think he's not just a jaywalker."

"I think if you go after him again, you should take some backup that's not Lula." Lester finished.

"And the rest?" Ranger pushed.

"Oh, the rest is that Donald was also wanted for questioning with Darren Glametta, the body found floating in the river a little over a month ago. But he wasn't a suspect at the time, only recently."

"Now that you mention it, Joe came home yesterday night asking me about Donald. He mentioned he went to see his girlfriend yesterday but never finished. I told him I was going to go after him after I got more info from you guys." Stephanie stated thoughtfully.

"Heh, I bet that went over big." Lester said with a chuckle.

"Babe, you have anything going on today?" Ranger asked taking her hand. Stephanie felt a warm sensation fill her body and she grinned.

"Not exactly. I got all my skips, except for Pinkie and Donald. I have to wait a few days for Pinkie."

"Do you want to run some searches at RangeMan today?"

"We'd love to have you stay, Steph! I'll even take you to lunch!" Lester blurted out.

"I don't think so, Stantos- I'll handle the lunch end."

"Fine. How about dinner, Beautiful."

Ranger glared at Lester his grip tightening on Stephanie's hand. "I've got dinner, you take lunch."

"I suppose. I could always use the extra money. Besides, I feel like staying in today." Stephanie left the room with both eyes trailing her out. She walked to where her desk was and always smiled that it was always left untouched, as if worked there everyday. Several searches later there was a knock on her wall. She looked up from the computer to see Lester leaning on the entryway in all his muscular massiveness.

"Is it time for lunch already?" Stephanie said slightly startled.

"Sure is. It's just after twelve."

"Oh! I had no idea." She busily began putting papers away and logged off her computer. As she Lester small talked about where to eat, Hal walked up and whispered in Lester's ear. His face went blank and he nodded as Hal backed away and left.

"Bad news, Beautiful," Lester smiled at the blue eyes that suddenly turned to disappointment, "We're going to have to have the pizza delivered."

"Oh?"

"Looks like the decapitated body is your skip, Donald Creto."

"At least it makes for an easy check." Stephanie said slapping the desk. "You don't think Ranger will mind the pizza. Do you?"

"Hell, no! It's for us- not him." This got a smile from Stephanie and they decided they were going to need more than one pizza if they were eating in RangeMan. The Merry Men loved a good excuse to suck down some grease, and Stephanie was always a great excuse to not get reprimanded by Ranger.

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"Guess someone else wanted to talk to Donny and didn't like the discussion." Joe said to Paige as he loaded her suitcase into the back of his Explorer.

Paige leaned against the car and stuck her hands in her jacket. Though the sun was out, it was hardly warm. The sunlight played on her hair like the autumn leaves on the ground. "You sure this is okay, Morelli?"

"Paige, it's fine. It's my house. You're my partner, you need a place to stay, and I'll be damned if your going to stay were someone leaves you a welcome home gift on your bed." Joe said slamming the back hatch closed. "Alright?"

Paige nodded and climbed into the car. "I definitely need a snack before bed. I feel like a shell of myself I'm so exhausted."

Joe looked at his watch and saw that it was after noon. "Whoa, what a long day. Chicken it is, that stuff will put you right to sleep." A quick stop at the Cluck-in-a-Bucket drive-through put them at the doorstop in no time flat. They grabbed the suitcases and a couple boxes with files from work and trudged them into the living room. Bob was thoroughly excited and ran circles around the couch. "Your room is at the top of the stairs to the right."

"This is a pretty nice place you have here. I never considered you to be domesticated." Paige commented playfully as she looked around

"It's a house, not a stocked fridge and pantry with cookbooks and canned goods." Joe said throwing her a blanket. "Go to bed. That's where I'm going. I turned my phone off and took tomorrow off. I'm no good to anyone this exhausted. I did the same for you."

Paige smiled and nodded, removing her phone from her pocket. She turned it off and placed it on the counter followed by her gun and badge. "Well then, goodnight." She conceded as she walked up the stairs. Morelli followed suit by removing his gun and badge and let Bob out the back. Upstairs Paige was pleased at the simplicity of the room. She stripped out of her clothes laboriously, dropping them on the floor, and pulled down the covers not even remembering closing her eyes.

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After the pizza boy had to practically go through an x-ray scanner, Lester brought six pizza boxes into conference room A and he and Stephanie enjoyed the cheesy goodness. Not long after the box was opened and the scent of dough and pepperoni wafted through the control room did Tank, Bobby, Hal, Zip, Cal, Ram, and Zero saunter in to empty the five additional pizza boxes. Stephanie was tickled pink as the guys continued to file in and everyone exchanged stories and laughed heartily like a fraternity. As the joviality continued, Ranger appeared in the doorway and an instant silence fell as bodies were moved to block the pizza boxes. He eyed the room suspiciously. "What is this?" He asked daring anyone to answer. Bobby stealthily moved around Ranger with his hands behind his back, mouthing "I'll take a few to Vince and Binkie," as he went back to the control room.

Lester in all his foolishness piped up, "Just a little bit of lunchtime fun, Rangeman!" Ranger did not look amused. "Ahh, Boss, take the stick out of your ass! It's been months since Bomber's been around long enough to entertain us and even longer to work searches. We all needed to catch up."

"I see." He scoped the room with a stony face, resting his eyes on Stephanie. Her blue eyes sparkled from the energy in the room and his stoicism broke with a single slight upward curl of the side of his mouth. "Then, I expect you all downstairs on the mats at 0400 tomorrow." Conglomerated groans filled the room. "Unless you want it earlier? I see you all need to work off a few…excess calories. Is that four empty boxes?"

"Six!" Lester shouted. Ranger shook his head. Lester raised his bottle of water to Ranger, joined by everyone else, and went back to talking. Ranger slightly nodded to Stephanie and went back to his office.

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Even though he turned off his cell phone, the house phone woke Joe. "Oh, god, I forgot." He mumbled as he reached for the receiver. "Hello?"

"Joe?"

"Hey, Cupcake."

"Are you sleeping?"

"What else would I be doing at three in the afternoon?"

"Oh, I guess that would make sense. I heard about the body in Paige's hotel room." Stephanie said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, made for one hell of a day. Or was it night? I don't know."

"Okay, I won't bother you anymore then. I'm going to be home late."

"Uh huh." Joe said turning over, ready to fall back asleep. "More skips?"

"No. I'm having dinner with Ranger." Stephanie said picking at her teeth.

"What!" Joe sat upright. "Where are you?"

"I'm working down at RangeMan today. I had to do some searches."

Morelli groaned and slunk into his pillow. "Steph…"

"I can't get my skips for a few more days."

"Well, I'll probably be sleeping. I took tomorrow off so I could sleep all day."

"Should I go back to my apartment tonight?" Stephanie asked timidly.

"Umm…if you are more comfortable with that."

"I think that would probably be best. You really need to have undisturbed sleep. You've been exhausted."

"Yeah." Joe said slurring. "Stop by some time tomorrow when you're done working."

"That's probably a good idea. We'll plan for a late lunch."

"Sounds good, Cupcake. We should be up by then. I'm disconnecting the phone. Bye."

The phone went dead and Stephanie stared into the receiver. She hung it up and turned her attention to the computer screen before her. "What the…" She said into space, "Did he just say _we_?"

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A/N Soooo? What do you think? Should Steph go home or keep her dinner arrangements?


	12. Chapter 12

***All of you have been amazing with your reviews and PM's! Thank you so much!***

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Stephanie sat contemplating the phone still in her hand. After running enough scenarios to create a novel, she shoved the phone in her purse and jumped up to leave, only to run into a large muscled figure.

"In a hurry, Beautiful?" Bobby said grinning.

"Oh! Bobby! I, uh…"

Bobby looked down at the files in his hand and then back at Stephanie seeing her distress. "Something bothering you, Steph?"

She sighed and slumped down into her chair. "I guess not. Actually, yes, Bobby. That woman!"

Bobby set the files down into her search inquiry bin and sat down on her desk. "_That_ woman? Listen, you are something so much better than what Joe, your mother, and all those other people think you're off your rocker."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Besides, you can't leave early, looks like you have some more inquiries." Bobby smiled as Stephanie gave him an evil eye. "See you later, Beautiful!"

Before she knew it, six o'clock was upon her and Stephanie was shocked she had worked so diligently. She decided to call it a night and walked to Ranger's office to find it empty. "Tank, where's Ranger?"

"Upstairs, Bombshell." Tank responded, not looking up from his monitor. "Interesting," he said more to himself than to anyone else.

"Umm, thanks." She went to the elevator and fobbed up to the seventh floor. She let herself in and saw Ranger standing in the middle of the room finishing the knot on his black tie. "Wow." She murmured.

"Hey, Babe."

"You own a shirt that's not black?" Stephanie said incredulously.

"I asked Ella to buy me something that would remind me of you." Ranger stated, never taking his eyes off her.

Stephanie felt her cheeks flush, "I'm under dressed. You're just, you look…so…I mean," Stephanie couldn't finish. She just stood there stuttering. Ranger was dressed in tailored black pinstripe Armani slacks and a sapphire blue button down shirt that skimmed over his muscles, not quite revealing how rock hard and toned his body was beneath. His short hair sat stood slightly on end and flat on the sides.

Ranger walked over and gently cupped Stephanie's face, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I got a call for a dinner meeting late this afternoon for a client. I tried everything to get out of it, but it's a high-profile client and they are leaving town tomorrow. I had to accept their invitation." The look on Stephanie's face showed that she was crestfallen. "I'm really sorry, Babe." He looked into her eyes, searching.

"It's okay, Ranger," she murmured breaking eye contact as she looked to the floor. "I understand that priorities are priorities. You have a business to run."

Ranger tilted her chin up. "Babe, don't ever think that you aren't a priority to me. If you would like…" he trailed off, contemplating what to say. "…_I_ would like for you to accompany me tonight." Stephanie rapidly turned her attention back to him.

"But, Ranger,"

"I know that it won't be just you and me, but I will make it up to you. Will you come with me tonight?"

"I don't know, Ranger. You just look so amazing and since it's for work, all business and everything, and well, me," She continued to ramble and looked down at her jeans with a pizza sauce stain and her gray turtleneck.

"I had Ella go shopping for you, hoping you would consent. Besides, I could use a date to accompany me."

"Oh?"

"Steph…please?"

'_Whoa! Did he just say please?'_ Stephanie melted on the spot. "Yes, I'll come with you."

"Go clean up, our reservation is at 8:00. I'd like to leave in one hour, it takes 43 minutes to get to the location."

Stephanie obliged and went to the bathroom. Naturally Ella had thought of everything. After thoroughly cleaning and blow drying her hair nearly straight, she pinned it half up and let the softened curls rest at her shoulders. She found the dress hanging in the closet and sucked in air. It was breathtaking. The white A-line satin and chiffon strapless dress fell just below her knees. The blue Swarovski crystal primroses dotted around the dress sharpened her eyes and the crystal studded silver stilettos wrapped perfect around her ankle elongating her legs. '_This must be one hell of client'_ she thought as she touched up her make-up. With one last look in the mirror she checked the clock and walked out precisely at seven. '_Am I good or what! Record time!'_ Ranger was on the phone and had just finished his conversation and turned around a long velvet box in his hand.

One look at her and Ranger instantly went hard. '_God, every time.'_ He smiled a full on 1000-watt smile and took her hand. "If only Morelli could see you now. Babe, you look absolutely beautiful." He said as he spun her around for a full view. "I think Ella needs a raise." Stephanie blushed at this gesture.

"Thank you, Ranger. It's a beautiful dress, I'm sure anyone could pull it off. As far as Joe, I'm sure he doesn't mind, he goes out all the time."

"I don't think so, Babe. That dress is all you. I have one more thing to finish your outfit." He held out the box and opened it. Stephanie gasped.

"My god, Ranger! It's beautiful!" She stared at the platinum five-carat sapphire necklace dotted with pear shaped diamonds wrapping around the neckline. Ranger clasped it at her nape and the necklace fell beautifully around her collarbone.

"Now you're complete," Ranger whispered into her ear, his breath sending a shiver down to her doodah. "We have to stop on five first." Ranger grabbed his matching Armani jacket and a skirt length dark gray cashmere one for Stephanie which he draped over his arm.

"Really? A jacket too? My, god, Ranger! This is too much." Stephanie said fanning herself.

When the doors opened there were was a conglomerate gasp across the floor and a few pens could be heard hitting the floor. As they walked over to Tank, Stephanie saw Zip fall out of his chair. "Tank, what's the word?"

"Boss, I got into the security of the Marriott and found that it appears to be a man dressed as room service. The body is under the cart- how, lame is that?"

"Do we know who it is?" Ranger asked.

"No, whoever he is, he keeps his head down the whole time, he's not hotel staff though, that's for certain."

"Very good, see if you can come up with anything else. I'm offline." Ranger took Stephanie's hand and led her back to the elevator. Heads popped up over monitors and through doorways trailing after them. Lester walked around the corner and looked over a file he was reading. Instead of stopping, he kept walking dumbfounded and ran into Bobby. They looked at each other grinning and nodding. Ranger turned as he stepped into the elevator catching their stares. He shook his head, "Tomorrow, 0330." Both men snapped out of their trances and gave a mock salute.

"Damn lucky bastard." Lester grumbled when the elevator doors closed. "On top of it, now we got the mat thirty minutes earlier."

Bobby smirked and slapped Lester on the back, "But it was worth it man."

Lester smiled and clapped a hand on Bobby's shoulder, "It certainly was my friend. Let's go see if anyone got a picture."

Ranger led Stephanie down to the Turbo and assisted her into the seat. She slid in and moaned at the leather and smell sinking into the seat. "Babe, you have to stop doing that." Ranger commented as the engine whirled to life and he pulled out of the garage. He drove in silence to an area Stephanie had never frequented on the other side of the river. It was very expensive looking and the houses looked like mansions and estates. He turned down a street lined with old fashioned style streetlights and drove through a pair of open wrought iron gates. "Good thing we didn't come in my car." Stephanie muttered as they drove up the long drive. The bushes lining the drive were speckled with twinkle lights, and a huge water fountain structure and pond rested in the middle of a roundabout were the valet was located. Ranger pulled the Porsche around the stony circle and put the car in park. He looked over at Stephanie and let the smallest chuckle escape as he squeezed her hand and she didn't respond, too awestruck to move.

The car doors opened simultaneously and two well-tailored men stood on either side. Ranger handed his door attendant the keys and a tip, putting his hand up to the other valet attendant. The attendant paused and stood with Stephanie's door open. Ranger handed the attendant a $100 bill and extended his hand to Stephanie. He bent his head down to the door, "Babe?" Snapping out of her trance, Stephanie accepted his hand and looked at the magnificent building before them. It looked like something out of an Irish tourism book, complete with moss crawling up the side of the stone.

"Who are these people?" She sputtered.

"They practically own New Jersey."

"Mob bosses!" Stephanie sucked in with shock.

This got a barking laugh from Ranger and a kiss on her hand. "No, they are legitimate. Sort of like the Kennedy's of Jersey, only not crooked." Ranger led her through the doors to be greeted by a din of laughter, conversation, and clanking of dishes. "Carols Manoso," Ranger stated to the Maitre'D. He looked up from his official podium desk and smiled warmly at both of them, eyeing Stephanie thoroughly. This caused Ranger to wrap his arm around Stephanie and draw her closer.

"Ahh, right this way Mr. Manoso. Your party has already arrived." They were led through a vast hall in rich mahogany and glass to their table of four. The business partners were well dressed and very pleasant looking, not looking like multibillionaires. The partners stood when they arrived introducing themselves and Ranger introduced Stephanie as he pulled out her chair. Dinner consisted of the most delectable grilled salmon Stephanie had ever experienced. The salad would give Ella a run for her money and then some, and the vegetables were marinated in a sauce that Stephanie was convinced must have come from the lost city of Atlantis, the recipe to taken to the grave. Though Ranger didn't partake of the wine, Stephanie didn't want to ask how much the wine was per glass.

The evening went very well and the conversation was not all business, which made Stephanie feel more comfortable. The thing was a new experience for Stephanie as she had never seen Ranger conduct business before. To admit, she was completely turned on by his professionalism and mannerisms. The tenderness and softness of his touch combined with the competency and efficacy of pitching RangeMan was fascinating. By evening's end, the brothers were more than ready to start their services with RangeMan and Stephanie was buzzing with excitement. Just before midnight, they said their good-byes and waited for the black Porsche to pull up.

"I'm stunned." Stephanie said as they drove back to Trenton.

"At what, Babe?" Ranger said taking her hand.

"You're so…professional."

Ranger smiled at her and shook his head.

"No, Ranger! I'm giving you a compliment! I was duly impressed. Oh, and you're very sexy tonight too."

Ranger squeezed her hand and continued to drive in the zone. "Where too?" He asked about thirty minutes later.

"If you just want to drop me off at my apartment, that will be one less trip for you. Apparently you have an early morning tomorrow." Stephanie said with a chuckle.

"Your apartment?"

Stephanie cleared her throat. "Yes. I'll call my dad in the morning to pick me up."

"Babe, I'll have one of my men bring the BMW back. It's yours until you don't want it. Do you not want it?"

Stephanie gave Ranger and incredulous look, "Are you kidding me! I'll accept your offer, thank you."

"One more thing. You up for a distraction on Monday night?"

"Sure. It's always fun don't you think?"

Ranger walked Stephanie up to her door and scanned the apartment. She stood expectantly in the living room looking over his gorgeous toned body and ass in those Armani pants. '_Damn, that is so hot! If I wasn't with Joe, I'd jump his Armani ass right now!'_

"Babe, really?"

"Shit, Ranger! Did I say that out loud?" She shrugged, "Oh, well, but you do look amazing." Ranger walked over and cupped her face, giving her the lightest kiss on the lips. Though brief, it was practically the most sensuous kiss she had experienced in years. With that, he left and Stephanie heard the Turbo roar to life. "Damn."

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Getting home at nearly one, Stephanie stumbled out of bed much later than normal and managed to get into the shower about noon. By one she was ready to head to Morelli's. Going through the normal routine, she found the BMW in the parking lot and beeped it open, heading for Slater Street. She pulled up and let herself in, nearly run over by Bob. "Whoa, buddy! Wow! How long has it been since you were out big guy?" She asked Bob after he emptied roughly two liters of bladder. They walked into the house and she looked around the living room. Before she could muster up any coherent reaction to what she saw, she heard a noise behind her.

"Morning, Cupcake." Joe said from the kitchen counter.

"It's actually the afternoon. You're finally up." Stephanie just stared confused that Joe was scrubbing the counter.

"Yeah, slept for nearly 20 hours."

"Joe, what is this?"

"I decided to clean the counter?"

"No, what's with the bags?" Stephanie motioned around with her arms.

"I invited a guest to stay here for a couple of days."

Stephanie raised her eyebrows so high she thought they would freeze into her hairline. "A guest?"

"Yeah, it's not a big deal."

"Oh?" Stephanie said crossing her arms tightly around her.

"Cupcake, it's just for three or four days until she can find a more permanent place to live."

"Whoa! She?! When you said "WE" yesterday I thought maybe Carl needed a place to crash or something. But SHE?"

Joe bit his lip and scrubbed a little harder. "Paige."

"WHAT! Joe!"

"She can't stay at the hotel since someone dumped a dead body in her room."

"What about another hotel? Or someone else?"

"Stephanie, don't. She's my partner and it just makes sense."

"Makes sense? Are you nuts? This doesn't make sense. You didn't even ask me." Stephanie said gruffly.

"It's my house." Joe hotly replied.

"Joe! I'm not comfortable with this!" Joe blinked at Stephanie with a quizzical look, then raised his eyebrow.

"What? Having her stay here?"

"Besides that! It's more than that. I'm not comfortable with her."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, I'm not comfortable with your…your…you know, your new partner." Joe's look of confusion rapidly turned to disbelief.

"Are you shitting me? Cupcake, I really don't think you are the one to be talking to _me_ about partners and comfort."

"How's that?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"You don't like Lula?"

"Christ, Stephanie! I'm not talking about Lula, I'm talking about Manoso!"

"He is my part-time boss, Joe."

"Really? Just your boss? What about your distraction jobs, your cross state travels together, skip assistance, chauffeur? Room assistance? Should I continue? What about last night, huh? Where did you go last night."

"We went to a business meeting." Stephanie said defensively, a small smile showing as she thought about last night.

"Right, a business meeting. Stephanie, you're throwing out a double standard with Manoso and all the shit he does for you!" His Italian temper was getting the best of him. "What about that car out there, huh?"

Stephanie suddenly felt caught in a cage. '_Shit'_ was all she could think. She really didn't want to accept that Paige was here to stay. "That's different."

"Different? How can it be different? I see the way he looks at you and you've even spent multiple nights at RangeMan!"

With a sigh of defeat, Stephanie whispered, "It's just…I'm not comfortable with her here after what she did to…" Stephanie suddenly stopped realizing what she just unleashed.

"I don't know what kind of shit Manoso was feeding you about Miami, but I wouldn't believe a word of it. She's a good cop, Steph."

"I trust Ranger."

"Yeah, well I'm not comfortable with you working with him."

"It's just that, your partner…"

"Paige is not a concern."

Stephanie sighed. "But it is to me." Stephanie walked away from Joe to pick up her ringing phone.

"Well, it shouldn't be and…"

"Hello? Yes. Tonight? No, it's not a problem. Uh, huh. Pick me up here? Hold on." Joe was waving his arms at her, she covered the phone. "What?"

"What's this about?"

"Uhhh…it's Ranger." Joe just stared at her in disbelief.

"Cupcake, seriously? Now?"

"He's, uhhh…"

"No! Come on, this is a double standard!"

Stephanie stared at him in disbelief and began clenching her jaw. "Actually, I'll meet you at RangeMan." She finished the conversation on the phone and snapped it shut.

"You're doing a distraction aren't you?"

Stephanie shouldered her purse and pushed past Joe retrieving Rex. "I have work to do, Joe. I'll be staying at my apartment. I won't stay here while Paige is here." Stephanie couldn't believe she was standing up for herself.

"Come on. It'll be fine. Just stay here, Cupcake."

"Joe, it's not up for discussion." Stephanie walked to the X6 and strapped Rex to the seat.

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"What was that all about?" Paige asked from the stairs. She was wearing a pair of boxers and a tank top, her hair freshly washed and damp.

"Nothing." Joe said tossing the washcloth in the sink. "What's up?"

"I just got off the phone with Slater, my ATF guy. They've noticed some increased activity with shipping permits but nothing too out of the ordinary. I told him what was going on here and the new vic in my bed. He said he's going to attempt to come out later this week to cross some of our files."

"The more the merrier. You feeling recovered?"

"This is the most rested I've felt in months! I'm ready for anything." Paige practically yelled.

"Great. How about going out tonight?"

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**Thanks for all the reviews and help everyone! I had to write in the part about the dinner because Ranger is just too hot and yummy to leave in black all the time**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thanks so much everyone for the reviews! They are so helpful and encouraging!**

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On the way back to her apartment, Stephanie decided she needed some retail therapy.

"'Lo?" Came the muffled sound of Lula over the phone.

"Hey, Lula…Are you eating?" Stephanie asked as she placed Rex's cage on the counter.

"Mmhmm. I got a free order of wings with my order at Cluck-in-a-Bucket. What's up white girl?"

"Want to go shopping?"

"Does a bear shit in the forest? What kinda question is that? You pickin' me up or what?"

"I'll be at the office in ten."

Much to Lula's glee, Stephanie pulled the X6 up front. Before she even had a chance to put it in 'park' Lula had the door open and was squashed into the seat taking deep breaths. "Ooowee, this is my kinda car. You sure got connections, girl. Let's go."

Two hours and several dollars later, Stephanie and Lula departed Macy's with more items than were necessary. Stephanie looked at the clock as they climbed back into, what Lula referenced as, the Bat-girl-mobile. "Alright. I'm going to drop you off. I have to get home and get ready for this evening."

"You wearin' that new outfit tonight? I sure hope so cause it's smokin'!"

Stephanie waved goodbye to Lula and trudged up the stairs to her apartment. She walked down to her door and leaned her head just below the numbers. She let out a sigh as she pushed the door open and dropped her purchases on the floor. Overall, she didn't feel dejected. She didn't know what to feel, but her mind was racing over what her real impression of Paige should be. Before she knew it, she was standing with a towel wrapped around her head doing Wonder Woman poses naked in front of the mirror. This brought a strange satisfaction and calm to her thoughts, giggling at how ridiculous she would look to anyone choosing to walk through the door at that moment.

Clipping the tags off her new purchases, she slipped the low neck silk blouse over her head making sure to undo that one button showing just too much. Her super Wonder bra had pushed the girls up so high it would give any Victorian corset wearing woman a run for their money. She made sure that her eyes were extra smoky and sultry looking and her mascara was Burg approved. Deciding on leaving her curls alone, she sporadically secured her hair with bobby pins and made her lips a voluptuous pouty red. Pleased with her appearance thus far, she slipped on her new dark charcoal high-waisted-empire pencil skirt that stretched over her curves seductively topping it off with a thick matching belt. Removing her new shoes from the box, she smirked at the leopard print peep-toe FMPs as she slipped them onto her feet. She grabbed her purse and practically skipped to the X6, knowing she was perfect for the part tonight.

The gate at RangeMan opened expectantly and Stephanie rode the elevator to the fifth floor.

"Oh my god! Holy, shit!" Lester blurted out as she stepped out on five. Stephanie glanced around at the fourteen eyes that were watching her every move. Ranger was in the center of the room leaning over a monitor deep in conversation with Tank, however, he knew that she had arrived. Looking up, he immediately glanced around the room observing the gawking faces and swiftly came to her side.

"Babe," he nearly whispered as he reached for her breasts. Gasps could be heard all around the floor, watching with bated breath. He expertly buttoned two buttons on her blouse and swiped a thumb across her cheek. "You know that's only for the field."

She gave Ranger a large toothy smile complete with tongue sticking out the side of her mouth and sighed, "I thought I could get away with it here. At least I got a reaction!"

"Hell, yes!" Lester said marching up, his pants noticeably tight. "I'm ready to go FTA, Beautiful, cuff me now and drag me away!"

"Santos! I believe you have a monitor to observe." Ranger barked.

"No way, Boss! I'm on detail tonight!" He winked at Stephanie and pat Ranger on the back.

Ranger followed him with a glare and took Stephanie's hands. "You look the part tonight, Babe."

Stephanie blushed and sat on the edge of a desk crossing her legs dramatically. "So who are we going after tonight?"

"Name is Charles Cranton. Wealthy stock broker who decided he needed to launder his money." He handed her a file with his picture.

"He doesn't even look that nasty." This got a few looks from the nearby employees. "He's almost attractive if he lost about 80 pounds." Stephanie commented. This got a chuckle out of Bobby who was sitting nearby. "What?" She looked around. "Not everyone out there is RangeMan material, and he definitely does not fit the profile or physique."

"Babe,"

"Well, he doesn't!" Stephanie reviewed the file further. "Oh, god! Who wrote this? Seriously! Lester! Where are you?"

Lester popped his head up over a monitor, "What is it, Beautiful?" A huge grin on his face.

"You created the signal for tonight's skip, didn't you?"

"I may or may not have won a coin toss." His smile broadened and muffled chuckles were heard around the control room.

Stephanie just stared at him shaking her head, "_Does it rock_?" She read from the file. Laughter burst out all around and even Ranger got a small twitch.

"I'm sure you'll be creative, Beautiful. You never disappoint." Lester said retreating back to his computer.

Ranger cleared his throat. "We leave at 1930."

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"I'm not doing it today." Morelli vehemently objected. "I told the Chief I was taking today off, and you were too. That means I am not going down to the station!"

"Come on, Morelli." Paige almost pleaded. "Just for a little while?"

"No. Maybe you should learn to enjoy down time, hmm? It's going to start all over again tomorrow. Let's just enjoy a day off. We've had plenty of rest, so we're now energized for another fun filled week."

Paige sat with one hand on Bob's head and the other under chin with a slight pout on her face. She crinkled her face and did a curt nod. "Fine."

"Good. How about you get a little more of a feel for Trenton? We'll spend the day just kicking around." Joe offered as he took Bob's leash off the wall. The clanking noise perked his ears and he slid across the floor running into Joe's legs to stop. "First off, we take Bob for a walk." Paige eyed him suspiciously but complied and grabbed her jacket.

Bob enjoyed the brisk air and they ended up giving Bob more than this normal walk. After stopping for a quick pastry, Paige decided it was time to become familiarized with the town. Aside from the usual point and explain, there was no mini-mart incident this time around, just conversation. Evening rolled around and they made quick Bob drop-off at home before deciding on dinner.

"How about that area of town we drove through today?" Paige asked.

Joe looked at her with a quizzical look shaking his head. "Sorry, there honey, but we drove through a lot of that area of town today."

"Alright then smart ass, how about…that north town area we went through?"

Joe smiled and agreed naming off places that might be of interest. Though the cuisine wasn't exactly vast, it was enough to provide a selection for most palates. As adventurous as they both were, they settled for bar burgers. The sun had already gone down and the air was turning cool and brisk. As Joe drove up Greenwood he noticed an entourage of black vehicles parked off a side street. "What the?" Joe whispered as he careened his neck glimpsing the messy curls that vanished through a bar door. '_Damn it! I'm going to enjoy myself tonight.'_ Joe thought.

"Problem, Joe?" Paige inquired with raised eyebrows.

He swallowed and shook his head. "Apparently not. It's not much further down the road. You're gonna love the grease at this place!" Joe found a parking spot across the street a short distance from the bar. They climbed out and walked into the drunken jovial ambience, the smell of ale induced an euphoric feeling as they found a pair of empty bar stools towards the back near the stage.

"Hey, hey, Morelli!" A booming voice came over the music. "Moonlighting as a pimp now?"

"Tico! You sorry sack of shit! What are you doing here?" Joe exclaimed grasping the extended hand before him.

"Hey man, I'm legit! I'm partner here!"

"No shit?"

"Way shit, man! Who's this beauty?"

Joe looked over at Paige who was sitting back, clearly amused. "Meet my partner, Paige Walker."

Both individuals shook hands and Tico tilted his head, "What's a beauty like you doing with a little fucker like him?"

Paige smiled, "Oh the usual. Crime, grime, and slime."

"Drinks are on me ladies."

"What about dinner?" Joe asked hands in the air.

"What, you think I run a charity here? Buy your own fucking dinner, but the drinks are still on me."

"Good call, my friend." Joe slapped him on the back.

"Well, you kiddies have a good time." Tico walked away and went behind the bar to serve some customers looking to get wasted. A twenty-something college age waiter with grunge band hair set two bottles of Corona on the table and quickly left.

"What's the story?" Paige leaned forward on the table and cocked her head towards Tico.

"Oh, typical former sleezeball. Did some hard time for drug pushing and decided when he found Jesus about four years in, it was time to do something better. He's a part owner here now. Apparently god likes bars."

"Good for him." Paige said smiling at Tico and raising her glass to him. He winked at her and went back to business. "Better here than on the street." She took a long drag on her bottle. "So, what are we ordering?"

"Some of the finest grease around, Honey."

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Ranger and Stephanie drove to the bar in a shiny black Dodge Ram 4x4. Ranger did a pass explaining where everyone would be and went over her purpose. "We got Santos and Vince in one car, they're going to be running the wires and will also be the ones who come in for Charles. Bobby and Binkie are sitting behind them in another car running the police scanners. They are also going to be monitoring the back exit and if necessary, backup. Any questions?" Her blue eyes were dark as she looked at the bar. "Babe, you okay?"

She smoothed her skirt and looked up at Ranger, "Yeah, I think I'm just nervous."

Ranger touched her cheek and lifted her hand to his lips, giving it a small kiss. "You don't have to do this, Babe, you know that."

"No. I want to, Ranger."

"Tank's a front door bouncer tonight."

Stephanie's eyes lit up. "Really?" Ranger nodded. "Ok. I'm ready to go now."

"We got you on the wire. And Steph?" She looked up eyes wide as he reached for her blouse. He undid the two buttons he had buttoned earlier and Stephanie let out a small squeak. "Now you're ready for business. We'll wait for your signal." He gave her a wolf grin and she slid out of the car.

"Oh! I'm sure you are. You sure we can't change it to something else?" Stephanie asked hopefully. Ranger just gave her a blank face. Sighing, Stephanie stood on the sidewalk adjusting her boobs then mentally prepped herself as she walked to the bar door. Ranger heard gasps over the radio as he flipped the car around and drove a block down to join the other black vehicles.

"Let's do this." Ranger said as he stepped into the car with Lester and Vince.

Stephanie nodded slightly at Tank as she walked into the bar. He very much looked the part. She spotted Charles sitting at the bar with empty chairs on either side. Head held high and with her best Burg walk she slipped onto the barstool placing her hand on Charles' leg to "lift" herself onto the stool, all the while flashing a beauty pageant worthy smile. Charles practically fell out of his chair at this gesture. The balding man turned bright red. "I'm sorry, is this seat taken?" Stephanie said exasperatingly, splaying her hand across her chest.

"Oh! No, no. Please, have a seat." Stephanie signaled the bartender and turned her legs so they were touching the skip's. The bartender came and Charles insisted on buying her a drink. "Thank you. What's your name?"

"Uh, uh, Ch..Charles."

"Well, Charles, may I call you Chuck? It sounds so much more masculine."

"A…anything you want. Heh."

"Oh, Chuck!" Stephanie laughed and ran her hand up his leg. "_Christ_, _Babe, you're going to give the man a heart attack."_ Ranger's voice came through her ear piece. Hardly touching her drink, but four drinks and three hours later for Chuck, he insisted he show her his yacht at the pier. "That just sounds so manly, Chuck. I've never been on a yacht. Does it rock?" Stephanie almost lost it when she said the last three words and heard the laughter boom into her ear.

"Oh, yes, very much so!" Chuck said slipping off his stool. "I can't wait to show you." Stephanie threaded her arm through his to avoid having him wrap himself around her waist. She nodded at Tank who was very much on alert. Chuck made stop at the little boys room.

"_Good, god, what is he doing in there?" _Lester came over the piece. Finally after he sufficiently felt relieved, Stephanie and Chuck walked out of the bar to be met by three men in black. Chuck couldn't even blink before Lester and Vince cuffed him and swooped him into the alley. Ranger wrapped a jacket around Stephanie walking back towards the cars joking about the rocking yacht.

"Great job, Babe."

"Thanks. It took a lot longer than I had hoped though. That guy can talk!"

Ranger stopped and scanned the empty SUV. "Where's the other team?" A little more surprise behind his voice than was intended. Lester looked up from securing Chuck to the floor and shook his head. "Green Team, report." Ranger directed into his speaker. Nothing came back. "Damn it, Bobby, where the fuck are you! Binkie?" Still silence.

The men looked around and began fiddling with the radio and speakers in the vehicle. Suddenly, a crackle came over the speaker. "…ger! Call came…the scanner."

"Bobby, repeat. You're breaking up." Ranger ordered his gaze dark and hands tight.

"Rang…they…call came…oh, shit!" The radio went silent.

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Joe and Paige stayed longer than anticipated as they listened to the terrible singers on open mic night. People who had three too many drinks were feeling like the next _American Idol_, yet everyone listening felt like Simon. Amidst the boos and peanut throwing, it was a hell of time. Finally after losing it on the previous singer, they decided to call it a night knowing they could not endure another bad country crooner. Feeling happy, but not drunk Joe held the door for Paige.

"Oh! Joe, I left my jacket on the stool." Paige said as she wrapped her arms around herself, meeting the cold air.

"I'll meet you at the car." Paige nodded and went inside. "See you later, bastard!" Joe yelled to Tico as he waved from the door. Tico flipped him off and gave him a mock salute. Joe laughed to himself as he exited the noisy bar. Walking down the sidewalk, he thought he heard gunshots, but figured it was a car backfiring. As he prepared to cross over to his car, a terrible crash reverberated through the air drawing Morelli's attention, turning him around to see a street light land in the street followed by squealing tires and a revving engine. He saw Paige walk out of the bar drawing her collar up around her neck. She stepped into the street crossing to where Joe's SUV was parked. The speeding car banked on the curb hitting a trashcan as it avoided a taxi. Like a deer in headlights, Paige froze as the car accelerated towards her.

"Walker!"

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**Sorry for the cliffie! R&R, updates soon!**


	14. Chapter 14

***Thank you to all who diligently review and give me encouragement! It gives me the push to keep writing! There is some language in this chapter. OH! I don't own Ranger, but rumor has it he's going to be under my Christmas tree! Santa do me right!***

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Joe ran at a full sprint into the street tackling Paige, holding her and rolling the distance into a parked car. Shots fired from the passing car and the scream in his ear was deafening as he held Paige tight against the car, huddling protectively over her. Two police cars with lights flashing and sirens blaring sped after the car. Paige was on the ground under Joe and as he pulled away he could see blood on Paige's face and neck.

"Oh, god. Paige?" Joe rolled off, brushing her hair off her face. "Paige,"

"I'm okay, Joe." Lifting up onto her elbows rubbing her head. "That was a hell of tackle, Detective."

"Are you hurt, there's blood on you."

Paige did a once over of herself, "I…I don't think it's from me." She checked herself again. "My hand is a little cut up but…oh, it's you." She stated rather calmly gingerly touching his arm.

Joe lifted his left arm and saw the source of blood. "Must have been a ricochet, it just sliced the arm."

Paige smiled wryly and looked up at Joe. "Oh, Joe!" She reached up and pulled herself around his neck embracing him. He reciprocated by wrapping his arms around her back. "Thank you." She whispered into his ear, kissing the side of his head. Her grip tightened around his neck and Joe thought he felt her trembling. "What the hell was that?"

Joe shook his head, "I don't know, but the sirens are close. Probably around the far corner."

More tires squealed making Paige jump and turn around to see black vehicle after black vehicle speed past. Paige looked down the street beyond the fallen street lamp to where the vehicles turned. "There's probably an entourage of police vehicles down there, an ambulance included. You up for walking?" Joe nodded. "Let's get you a bandage from the medic, eh?"

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"What is taking so long?" Lester looked up from over the keyboard at Ranger who was on the phone. A normal person would think that Ranger was incredibly calm, but to the four people around him, he was scathingly upset. "Where?" Ranger hung up. "Santos, take the com car."

"Wh..wh…what about me?" Chuck said from the Escalade holding up his shackled hands. If looks could kill, Chuck would have died instantaneously from Ranger's glare. "Vince, Tank, follow me with the skip. Steph, get in the truck."

"Boss?" Tank questioned.

"An indirect incident with another RangeMan building. Words exchanged. Shots fired. That's all I know." Ranger ran to the truck signaling the end of the conversation. Stephanie barely got her seatbelt clicked when Ranger took off.

"Ranger, what about Bobby and Binkie?" Stephanie asked her eyes large and concerned.

Ranger didn't say anything, he just drove fast down the street and around the corner, turning down an alley to avoid the police barricade popping out on the other side. The truck hardly stopped when Ranger jumped out and ran into the frenzy of policemen. Stephanie got out to follow but was restrained by a firm grip on her arm.

"Wait." She turned around to see Tank, a look of concern across his face.

"But," Stephanie began. Tank just shook his head. Strangely she understood that this meant, "_We need to wait until Ranger gives the signal_," and leaned against the truck. "That doesn't mean we can't see what's going on." Tank gave her a warning glare. "I'm only going to check things out from the alley. I won't even go up to the barricade. Come on, you know you're interested." She walked to where the streets met and saw Ranger get lost in the plethora of people.

Ranger scanned the sea of lights and blues walking around. Firemen were extinguishing some flames outside a building. He walked up to the barricade the policeman not even questioning his presence and slipped under, walking headlong to the ambulance where a man dressed all in black was hovering over a gurney. "Manoso," Ranger felt a hand on his arm halting his progress. Slightly perturbed, he turned to see Armand Gamache.

"Inspector," Ranger growled.

"We had an incident that…"

"No shit. If you'll excuse me," Ranger shrugged the hand off, "I have a man to tend to."

"I need to brief you on…"

"I'll be back." Ranger finalized the conversation, turning to leave.

"Fucking Terminator." Gamache shook his head, and slunk back into the swarm of officers.

Ranger walked to the ambulance tending to his men. Bobby leaned over the gurney and assisted the medic. "Pull it tighter." The medic told Bobby. Blood was pulsing from Binkie's leg in a very rhythmic fashion around the protruding femur, staining the white gurney a bright scarlet. "As soon as we get the tourniquet set we can take him to the hospital. We've got to stop the bleeding as much as possible. He's already lost quite a bit of blood." They both pulled the band and dropped the squirting to a trickle. Binkie masticated so hard his muscles danced clear up his head. "Ff…Oh, hey, Boss." Binkie said sweat dripping from his brow as he nodded to Ranger. "Not a whole lot happening here." The medic grabbed the leg above the knee and Bobby followed suit towards the top of the leg. With a crack, the femur was set and back in the skin. Binkie grunted and jerked his leg. "Aren't you guys suppose to give me something?" Ranger stood arms folded amused at the sight of Binkie's leg and eyed the blood saturated gauze on Bobby's neck that was beginning to drip, pooling at his collarbone.

The medic looked at Bobby wide-eyed, "Didn't you give him a morphine shot?" Bobby shook his head a slight twinkle and grin flashing across his eyes. "Geez, man, why didn't you say something earlier?" The medic grabbed a syringe and shot Binkie full of happy juice.

"Getting weak in your old age there, Bink." Bobby said patting his friend's arm, strapping his leg.

"This stuff's amazing!" Binkie said preparing to stand. "Let's go!"

"What are you doing!?" The medic halted Binkie's progress pushing him down onto the stretcher, securing him with straps. "Stay put." Ranger and the medic lifted and pushed Binkie into the back of the ambulance. "Secure!" He yelled up front smacking the back of the ambulance. He turned to Bobby, "Thank you. We're a little short handed tonight with that maniac hitting things through town. You need to go get yourself checked if not go to the hospital." Bobby shrugged. The medic shook his head and handed him some more gauze. "The ambulance over there," he pointed over to a fire truck, "is the stationary unit tending to _superficial_ injuries, at least pay them a visit." The medic jumped into the back and took off with Binkie.

"Boss," Bobby nodded to Ranger, swaying as he stood. Ranger hooked his arm, guiding him toward the medvac unit. "What a night."

"Apparently." Ranger mumbled as they approached the medvac.

"Holy cow, man!" A paramedic said taking Bobby before he could tell Ranger any details. "Derick, I need a kit." He turned his attention back to his new patient, shining a light in his eyes. "What's your name?"

"Bobby."

"Okay, Bobby, this may hurt. What's your story?" He asked as he ripped the blood soaked patch off Bobby's neck. Bobby didn't flinch, he sat unfazed. Another paramedic came over mumbled, 'here you go Paul' and placed a box by his leg. Bobby looked up at Ranger knowing he should keep discretion with the details.

"Some nut was in the building and a stray bullet blew the radio off my shoulder. Guess I got a little shrapnel and a neck burn. Just slap a Band-Aid or cotton ball on."

"Little nothing, I'm surprised you didn't get the artery. There's no debris in this wound, but I will need to stitch it up."

"Can't I just do it myself?" Bobby asked.

Paul shook his head and swiped some antiseptic on the wound. "No. It'll go faster if you're not looking in a mirror." Ranger waited patiently as Paul thread the needle and began to suture.

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Paige and Joe walked over one street into what looked like Christmas with all the lights flashing. Joe had his arm wrapped around Paige's shoulder, keeping her close, his left arm leaving a trail of blood. Scanning the chaotic scene as they walked to the nearest ambulance he spied a man in black standing with his arms folded observing a medic attending to another black clad man. "Manoso."

Ranger looked up staring suspiciously at Joe and Paige. Joe felt a sudden tension grip Paige's shoulders as she caught Ranger's stare. "Carlos." Paige muttered.

"Detective Walker." No emotion showed on the three blank faces. "I see Miami didn't treat you well." Ranger muttered.

"Just doing my job, Carlos." Paige said coolly. Though the medic continued to stitch Bobby's neck, he careened it as far as he could to hear the conversation without stretching the stitching. Ranger continued to be emotionless.

"What does your job entail, Detective? Tired of the Miami sex life?" Ranger asked flatly.

"Go to hell, Manoso." Joe shot back. "You're the one to talk. Don't you have a bastard daughter back in Miami?"

Ranger let Joe's comment slide off him. "No one to fuck for information after my brother and Tanner?" Ranger's eyes flashed with malice, but his face gave away nothing.

"Tanner?" Joe asked confused.

Paige snapped. "Bastard!" Before Joe could react Paige swung a full force slap to Ranger across the face. Her hand never connected. Quicker than her assault, Ranger grabbed the insulting hand wrapped it behind her back, twisted her around, and pulled her against him. Completely amused, Bobby too reacted and jumped off the back of the ambulance and restrained a furious Joe. Paul was so stunned watching Bobby restrain a man with a needle and thread hanging out of his neck, he just let it unfold.

"Don't ever attempt to strike me again, Detective." Ranger whispered deathly in her ear. "Let's be big kids and act nice." Paige was breathing hard trying not to fight his hold. "You crossed me once before. You slandered my family and me. Never again. Understood?" Paige curtly nodded.

"Manoso! What the hell! Get off me Brown!" Joe was yelling, his Italian temper raging. "Are you threatening a police officer?"

"Hey!" Came Paul's voice, breaking away the confrontation. "Bring that neck over here now, Bobby. And you," he pointed to Joe and his dripping arm, "go see Derick on the other side of that truck." Ranger released Paige. She flipped around her emerald eyes on fire. She contemplated spitting on him, but thought better of it.

"Temper still matches the hair." Bobby said. He released Joe, who pulled Paige out of striking distance and walked to where he was directed, muttering expletives. Bobby could feel the blood trickling down his neck and realized he had a needle dangling on his shoulder. Obediently, Bobby walked back to Paul and sat down promising to be a good patient.

"Who the hell does he think he is?" Joe muttered to Paige. Derick sat Joe down and had him take off his coat and shirt. A smile flickered on Paige's mouth as his hard muscled body was revealed. Joe grinned and was brought back to reality as iodine was applied to wound and Paige's phone rang. "Excuse, me." She turned and walked over to the sidewalk to carry on a conversation.

"It's not very deep, Detective, just long." Derick said rummaging through his kit. "I'm not going to stitch you up. I'm going to apply a little bit of styptic to the gash and wrap you up. You should be bandaged and ready to leave in no time."

"Thanks." Joe muttered, watching Paige's animated conversation.

Within fifteen minutes, Joe was bandaged and dressed. Paige came back and gave him a questioning glance. "I'm afraid I'll live."

Paige gave him a quick hug. "That was Slater." Joe turned acknowledging his interest. "He checked some more of the shipping records to export records and dates of possible gun drop-offs and nothing matched. Damned dead end again. Any word on the driver."

"I'm in the dark as much as you." Joe shrugged his jacket back on. "Get, your hand cleaned, I'll find out some info." Paige nodded and sat in front of Derick. Joe walked back into the maze of activity and noticed Ranger nodding and signing a paper with Gamache. He decided to wait until Ranger was done talking to Armand before he approached. Joe looked around and noticed Stephanie standing off in the alley and walked over. "Steph." His eyes got wide as he got closer.

"Joe!" She stepped forward and gave him a hug, not noticing his grimace.

"What the hell, Cupcake?" Tank took a slight step forward and eyed Joe.

"What are you doing here? I thought you had the day off?"

"I'm a cop, there's a police incident. What are _you _doing here? And dressed like this." He took in her outfit and noticed her cheeks color.

"But I thought you were off duty. I told you I was doing a distraction." Stephanie said as she buttoned a button on her blouse.

"Yeah, well, I didn't think you would actually go through with it after you left this morning. For as much of a stink you threw about Paige, I thought you would have a little more decency with…your working relationship."

Stephanie gave him an incredulous look, "Seriously? I was working too!"

"Mmm hmm, I can see that." Joe rolled his eyes. "We were down the street when an erratic driver decided to shoot a gun and run us over." Stephanie gasped. "I have to get back."

"Are you okay?" Concern splashed on her face.

"Yeah. I got a ricochet," he touched his arm, "but we'll be fine." He turned and noticed Ranger and Bobby walking his way. "I gotta go." He gave a chagrined look to Stephanie and glared at the men behind her.

"Bobby!" Stephanie cried as she ran to him. "What happened?" Bobby pointed to his throat and voice box and shook his head sadly turning his hands up. "Oh, my god!" Stephanie threw her arms around him.

"Ass." Ranger said shoving Bobby.

"I'm just joking, Beautiful. I'm fine." Bobby said grinning.

"What happened? We were coming out of the bar and then…" Stephanie stopped. "Where's Binkie?" Noticing the funny looking guy wasn't around she looked at the blank faces of Ranger and Bobby.

Bobby put his hands up and hung his head shaking his head, hiding his smile.

"Um, Binkie didn't make it." Stephanie's distress turned to shock.

"Brown! Car. Now." Ranger ordered. "Babe, don't listen to a word he says."

"Oh, Stephanie, it's just too easy sometimes." Bobby said walking to the truck and helping Stephanie into the truck.

"You're a jerk!" Stephanie sassed as she stepped up.

"Santos, Tank, take the skip down and report back to RangeMan. Vince, take the com car back to RangeMan, we'll assess when we get back from St. Francis." The men nodded at Ranger and went to their respective vehicles. Ranger and Bobby climbed into the truck. Ranger looked in the mirror back at Bobby. Recognizing this was his way of asking what happened, Bobby began.

"Binkie and I were listening to some police shit go down on the scanner when you guys left to get Chuckles. The perp apparently broke into the hardware store next to our building to hide out from the police. Like a good criminal, he just wanted some alone time. The cops showed up to surround the building and exchange a good round of words back and forth. The guy in the building got pissed off and decided he wanted to leave, but the back was covered. Bastard decided to drop a firebomb out the door and threw another one out of the window into the street so he could escape.

"Obviously this shocked everyone, so he ran out of the building firing blindly as he jumped in his car. Threw another firebomb out the window and kept his finger on the trigger. Binkie got the kickback of the blast blowing his ass into the street and caught the guy's bumper as he sped off. Radio on my shoulder got hit by a bullet and exploded. Heh, guess I should be glad it wasn't an inch down or over."

"Bobby that's terrible!" Stephanie said turning around to face him.

"You gotta give the guy credit. He was making little homemade bombs while the police were trying to negotiate with him. Almost admirable." They arrived at St. Francis and Ranger parked in the visitor's lot near the emergency room entrance. Ranger turned the engine off and a slight sigh escaped.

"What was that?" Stephanie asked. Ranger didn't say anything. "Was that a…a sigh, Ranger?" Stephanie could hear Bobby chuckling as he got out of the car.

"Babe, since you entered my life, I have made more trips to St. Francis's emergency room overseeing injuries to my men, than before I even had RangeMan started. Now we're like frequent fliers."

"It could always be worse, Ranger."

"Let's hope not."

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Morelli got the same rundown of information that Bobby gave Ranger. "So why did he run? Is there a connection with anything else?" Joe asked.

"Nothing more as of yet." Armand said scratching his head. "All I know is this guy made a mess, and he's still out there making a bigger mess of the city. We got three cars chasing him down, and eight more at various barricades and intersections leading out of the city."

"Keep me posted. I don't see any dead bodies. I said I was taking the day off, so I'm still off. See you tomorrow." They shook hands and Joe turned away walking briskly back to his car.

"Joe! Hey, Joe, wait up!" Paige called after him as he turned the corner. She caught up to him as he approached the car and unlocked the doors. "What the hell? You were just going to leave me?" Joe placed a hand on the hood and shook his head disapprovingly as she stood before him, hands on hips.

"I don't get it, Walker. We're suppose to be partners and you give me a line of shit and bits and pieces about your time down in Miami. Then I got Manoso who seems to know more about you than I do, and I work with you for Christ's sake! What do you want me to think, huh?"

Paige kept a firm stare and dropped her hands to her sides. "I'm not sure what you want me to say."

"Not sure? That's all you can say? How about we start with Miami, huh? So you slept with Manoso's brother to get information. But then Manoso throws out a Tanner too, who knows who else, you fucking Manoso too?" Joe heard the slap before he felt the sting.

Joe rubbed his cheek and locked eyes with Paige. "I may have deserved that, but I won't condone it. Touchy subject, Honey?"

Paige didn't move, but he noticed her breathing trying to become more controlled, her jaw working overtime. "I have never, nor do I ever, plan on sleeping with Carlos Manoso. I think our interaction tonight was quite indicative of my relationship with Carlos." She hissed through clenched teeth, stopping to calm herself. "You're right, you deserve more than I have been giving you." She hung her head in slight shame. "I'll tell you whatever you want."

Joe felt his shoulders ease, not realizing the tension he had been carrying. "Thank you. I'm glad you feel that way."

"Should I start with Miami?"

Joe picked up her bandaged hand and rubbed the top. "Let's start with Tanner." Paige's head shot up and she swallowed hard.

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Thanks for reading another chapter! Review!


	15. Chapter 15

****You gals have all been fabulous about reading! Thanks to all who review and give me support and ideas!****

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"I think Miami is probably a better choice." Paige said looking up at the sky. Clouds had rapidly covered any visible stars and raindrops began to speckle the sidewalk and hood. "Miami is everything." She walked around the car and climbed in the passenger seat.

"I can't fully do my job if you can't trust me, Walker. I'm supposed to be your partner. It's new for me, but I've seen enough pairings out there to understand what my obligation and responsibility are to you. I can't do that if I don't know what's going on with you."

Paige sighed very deeply and rested her head on the seat. "Morelli, let's start with what you know."

"No, you're not turning this around on me. What are you, a politician?" Joe asked in disbelief as he slid behind the wheel.

"Hardly. I just need to know what where to fill in the blank spots."

Joe clenched his teeth and figured he would go along. "I know what your file says. You're a transfer from Miami PD. You did patrol for two year then vice for three,"

"Four." Paige corrected.

"Okay, four years. You got a bad rap with Rangeman. You are currently homeless. I think you may dislike Manoso as much as me." Joe finished and put his hands up. "Oh, and you drink your coffee black, have a killer scar on your right arm, and a tattoo on your back. That's it."

"Hmm." Paige sat assessing. "I suppose we'll start with the guns."

"What, no childhood stories?"

"I'm sure those'll come out at some point, but for now, let's talk about the SA's."

"SAs?" Joe asked.

"Stands for Special Artillery. Those nasty guns and killer ammo are what I'm all about. As you know, this whole weapons charade we're on originally began in Miami. When they got tired of the law getting too close, the bad guys decided to move up to Trenton, hence why I am here now. We worked on the case for three years, death after death with the cop killer guns."

"We?"

"Yes, _we_."

"As in the department, we?"

Paige looked at Joe, biting her lip. "Joe, I wasn't exactly honest with you." Paige began looking out the rain-splattered window. "I've always worked with a partner."

"But what about that shit you said 'it's been awhile'?"

"It has been. I had a partner for four years down in Miami."

"Then why'd you leave? Obviously this isn't the glam of Miami. I'm sure you're partner was disappointed to see you leave." Morelli examined Paige in the dim light seeing for the first time her vulnerability.

"That's where Tanner comes in, Joe."

"So Tanner wasn't just some information fuck buddy like Manoso said?"

Paige shook her head.

"Oh?"

Paige inhaled deeply not taking her eyes away from the window. "The case went dead for three months until a month ago when forensics matched that body you guys found floating down the river. So I followed the trail to Trenton. My partner, Tanner, and I worked vice for this weapons case from its inception three years ago. We thought that after two years we were making progress. Tanner and I finally got a solid lead after five months of nothing. All of our sources confirmed the lead as legit. Miami PD, FBI, and ATF all headed down to the pier where the drop-off for the weapons containers was happening. We arrived and all hell broke loose. It was a goddamn setup."

Morelli reached over and took her hand. Paige continued, "They were waiting for us and we never saw it coming. We all thought this was a departmentally contained takedown."

"With three departments?" Morelli added.

Paige grimaced, "It was supposed to be. It was only a handful of people in each bureau."

"What about RangeMan? You were getting information from them too."

"After we were done with that fucked up incident, it was the first place I wanted to look but they're tighter than Fort Knox. All I know is there was a mole somewhere, and it cost us dearly."

"Do you think that RangeMan was involved? It could have been an act against you on Manoso's order for what you did to his family."

"Believe me, I have always had my suspicions. What I do know is that those weapons were fierce. We didn't stand a chance. It was a blood bath."

"I remember reading about that at the beginning of the year. I wasn't aware that it was related, and I certainly didn't know you were involved. It seems the whole story sort of fell quiet. Did you get anyone?"

"Oh we got several, but they all died or disappeared before questioning. Some of them from gunshot wounds others killing themselves. The one or two that were left alive mysteriously vanished."

"And your partner?"

Paige touched her right arm. Morelli kept watching her, her jaw clenching. "This scar," Paige said rubbing her upper arm, "was a result of that night. I know I told you it was a birthmark, it sort of is. The ammunition discharged by those weapons was nothing we had ever seen before. The gunfire was just reverberating. Tanner and I were running back to the pier entry and we got caught in the middle. It was blind rapid fire and we were camped out behind pallets and barrels. I didn't have any bullets left in my gun, so Tanner was covering me. We were running blind, just trying to get to safety. I ran first and a gunman stepped in front of me.

"I didn't want to pull any attention to my partner, so I froze. The gunman considered me his next target and fired. Tanner threw himself in front of me knocking me down, firing at the gunman. I felt like the fucking president with the Secret Service. He took the bullet in his vest, but those bullets hold no bars. It went in, through, and out his vest then into my arm shattering my humerus."

"Paige…"

"Tanner never made it."

"I'm sorry." Joe shook his head.

"He died in my arms on the pier. I never asked him to save me. But he did, just like you did tonight."

"Hey, we're partners right? That's what we do. I'm doing my part." Morelli said, squeezing her hand. "I'd do it again."

"Thank you, Joe. You don't know how hard this has been for me. Tanner and I were together night and day. I want to get these bastards. If RangeMan is involved, then I want to see the whole operation go down." Paige said almost vindictively.

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"Miss Plum, do you need medical attention?" Stephanie shook her head. "Good evening, Mr. Manoso." The all too perky greeting came from the plump ER admittance desk nurse. "We've been expecting you."

This got a snicker out of both Bobby and Stephanie. They couldn't help it. Ranger really did hate the hospital and they really did need a frequent visitor punch card. Due to the car maniac, the emergency room was swarming with activity. Ranger politely acknowledged the woman as she held out a pudgy hand and slid a clipboard across the counter. Ranger pulled out the RangeMan insurance card and the woman jumped up to take a photocopy. Bobby and Stephanie were practically in stitches watching him glide through the routine. He gave them both a death glare, causing them to laugh harder.

"Come on, Boss, we'll be gone in no time. Besides, I think they already have a room on standby for us. You know, VIP." Bobby and Stephanie giggled as Ranger turned away clearly unamused. He nodded to the woman as she returned the card. As he pocketed the card, an ER nurse came through the doors and smiled pleasantly at the two buff men before her.

"Mr. Manoso," She was your average nurse with frosted hair, a name tag that said "Sandy," wearing purple scrubs, walking with purpose. Obviously she knew the overly fit man in black would be the one in charge of her patient as he matched in both attire and physique.

"What is the status on my man?" Ranger asked all business.

She looked down at the chart in her hand, "Sebastian has been in surgery since arrival. He is currently on the table and stable. He severed his femoral artery so that took some time to repair. The compound fracture of his femur is being set with the assistance of a titanium rod and fourteen screws." Stephanie sucked in a breath trying to hold in her laugh, but lost it, burying her head into Bobby to avoid being rude, shaking slightly from laughter. "It's okay, Miss, he'll fully recover."

Bobby "soothed" her stroking her head and back, knowing full well why she was laughing. This caused Stephanie to shake even harder into near body jerking movements. Using every once of his own will to not laugh and remain serious he laid it on, "There, there, Stephanie. Sebastian will be fine. There's no need to be distressed." Ranger gave him an incredulous look and thanked the nurse. The tears were flowing and Stephanie could feel Bobby supporting her dead weight. Bobby had a huge grin on his face. Stephanie took huge labored breaths and looked up at Bobby wiping her tear stained face.

"Not a word." Ranger's voice came icily.

"Oh, god, Ranger! I thought _Binkie_ was bad. Sebastian? Where's the rest of the undersea crew? Does that make you King Triton?" Stephanie choked out the rest of the words as Ranger pointed his arm, dismissing them. She and Bobby finally calmed down as they walked to get a snack from the vending machine.

"King Triton! Oh, Sweetie, that was hilarious!" Bobby chuckled as he retrieved the snickers from the machine. "In all seriousness, I'm glad Binkie's doing well."

"I know. That's was just too much! I suppose we should get back to Ranger. It's nearly midnight, and I'm spent." Stephanie said licking the chocolate off her fingers. They walked back to Ranger who was again talking to the nurse.

"Binkie's out of surgery in recovery. They are going to keep him overnight and at least until Tuesday." Ranger said.

"Do we need to go check on him?" Bobby asked.

"He's sedated." Bobby nodded knowing this meant talking to Binkie would be useless and he would never remember they were even present. "I'll send Zero down to keep watch over him once I get the word he's been moved. Given that his surgery was successful…" Ranger's phone rang pulling him from the conversation. "Yo." Ranger's face remained impassive.

"Ranger, you need to get back to RangeMan, now!" Vince's voice urgently came through the speaker. "We've got a 7-12." Ranger hung up and grabbed Stephanie's hand turning on his heels.

"Brown, car. Now." Bobby kept pace behind Ranger and Stephanie.

"What…" Stephanie said startled as they ran through the doors to the car.

"We have a situation."

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Joe hadn't realized the length of time that had passed since they got in the car. The temperature had dropped significantly, so he started the car to warm it for the drive home. "I don't understand why it had to be such a big secret with you, Paige. We all come from the same blue blood, we understand these things."

"The transfer was just so sudden, and the report back on you said you were…well, you never had a partner. I was concerned that knowing what happened to my last partner would give you an unnecessary pretense about working with me. I didn't want to have your attitude getting in the way of objective."

"Attitude? Objective?"

"You know what I mean. So don't give me that! Joe, you can understand why this is so important to me. It isn't just about Carlos' brother. It's about my partner too. And maybe, just maybe having this case closed will bring to fruition his service and sacrifice."

"But what about the objective?" Joe asked.

"The mole. Plain and simple. Being removed from Miami, I'm able to do more work and research without the people involved looking over my shoulder. If it indeed was someone working within the organization, I don't want them knowing that I'm digging. If it was RangeMan, I'm just closer to the devil. I think RangeMan monitoring my actions will be a moot point. Their interest in me faded awhile ago so I should be able to stay under the radar."

"You really have a beef with Manoso."

Paige breathed deeply, "I almost hold him responsible for Tanner's death." She blinked rapidly and grimaced. Joe noticed the lost look form in her eyes, the pain becoming omnipresent. He reached across, and gathered her into him. The pained look she had exhibited was ephemeral, replaced by a warm relaxed embrace.

Joe couldn't help but feel how soft she seemed. Paige snuggled into him as she felt his grip tighten around her waist and back. '_My, god!' _She thought, '_I can't.'_ Pulling away, Paige could see pools of chocolate forming in Morelli's eyes. A look she had never seen from him, but one she was not ignorant to, looked back at her, hungry. They gaze locked as Morelli moved his hands up to her neck and head leaning into her.

As if the car ignited, a burst of hotness flashed through both bodies as their lips pressed together. The passion rose as their hands wandered over familiar surfaces. Caressing, groping, exploring. Breaking for air, they pulled apart.

"Morelli." Paige whispered.

"Is it customary for this to happen to partners?" Joe asked leaning back rubbing his chin.

"I don't think so. I mean, it's never happened with me before."

"Then what was that?"

"I…I don't know, Joe. But it was something."

"Yeah, it was." He whispered.

"Then there's nothing that should be stopping us, Joe." He ran his hand through her short hair. Paige grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him across the seat, feeling him hard against her thigh. As their lips began to touch, a ring pierced through the car. Joe sighed and hung his head, kissing her neck as he reached for the phone. "Don't," Paige whispered, "I thought we were off." As he dismissed it, her phone began to ring and she silenced it, placing it on the dash. Joe smiled and slipped his hands under her shirt, moving up her stomach and feeling the warmth of the fold under her breast. Another ring halted his movement. Paige licked her lips and bit her bottom lip, nodding. Sighing, Joe grabbed his phone.

As he answered, Paige's phone started to chirp again. She looked perplexed at the phone then to Morelli. "What is it?" Joe said curter than he intended. "Now? Can't this wait? I'm suppose to be…What happened? What! Is he…" Morelli hung up the phone and threw the kojak light on the car as he sped down the road.

"I understand. Where?" Paige asked into her phone. "We're coming." She hung up and looked over at Morelli. "Oh my god, Joe."

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Sorry, I know,a cliffie before Christmas. I would love to hear your feedback and reviews!


	16. Chapter 16

***Phew! The holiday's are over! For all you patient readers, here is the next chapter. I posted a previous chapter refresher, just in case. Please let me know what you think! Also, this chapter contains strong language. I have thrown the idea around of changing the rating to M because of the harsh language, but really didn't want to, so I'm giving you a disclaimer! Thanks to all!***

(Oh, and I only own Paige, but she's for sale if you want to give me Ranger)

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LAST CHAPTER: _As he answered, Paige's phone started to chirp again. She looked perplexed at the phone then to Morelli. "What is it?" Joe said curter than he intended. "Now? Can't this wait? I'm suppose to be…What happened? What! Is he…" Morelli hung up the phone and threw the kojak light on the car as he sped down the road._

"_I understand. Where?" Paige asked into her phone. "We're coming." She hung up and looked over at Morelli. "Oh my god, Joe."_

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"Look at this mess, Joe." Paige murmured. She sat quietly suddenly feeling chilled by the familiar sight. She rubbed her arms in a protective manner and slunk back into the chair, closing her eyes tightly, like a small child. Morelli maneuvered the Explorer through the maze of cop cars and emergency vehicles. Joe honked the horn and kept pressing forward, stopping short of a police barricade. He surged from the car and jumped the barricade running through the masses of cops, stopping next to Chief Larson. Larson's face was stony but ashen as he stared unmoved at the crumpled mess before him.

"Chief?" Morelli asked swallowing the lump that was forming in his throat. Larson said nothing as he was mesmerized by the flashing lights. "Chief?"

"I don't think there's much to tell you, Morelli. Costanza suffered several fractures and he was pretty beat up. He's been life flighted to St. Francis." Larson paused, however, the look on Joe's face told him to continue. "I'm sorry, Morelli." His voice cracked, "Eddie didn't make it."

Joe blinked several times, nausea threatening to takeover. "Gazarra?"

The Chief put a hand on Joe's shoulder, "I'm sorry, Morelli, it was Big Dog."

"Fuck!" Joe yelled kicking the door of a police car, heavily denting it. He swallowed the bile that was creeping up his throat, burning back down to the stomach. "There's going to be more than hell and wrath to fall upon this asshole! Fuck me! God damn it! Piece of fu!" Joe continued to kick the shit out of the police car and felt himself pulled away mid tirade and flipped around. He came face to face with glowing cat eyes.

"Joe. Stop…Please." Paige said calmly, wrapping her arms around his back. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Joe took a deep breath and inhaled her scent. He felt his heart rate calm and ignored the throbbing in his foot. "Paige I…"

Paige pulled back and gave him a knowing nod. "No matter what you do, or how hard you try, nothing, nothing will bring him back." Paige's voice was thick with emotion as Morelli embraced her again. She recognized the pain in her voice as reminiscent agony.

"_Run!" His voice was thick and panicked as he looked over to his redheaded counterpart. All she gave was an imperceptible nod. The bullets and ricochets pinged around their heads as they sprinted around a building, making cover under the smoking scoop of a bulldozer._

"_Fuck, me, Tanner!" Paige said grasping at her chest. "There's a goddamn mole and this whole fucking thing was a setup!" Her breath was labored and sweat was trickling down her temple. _

"_Paige! Stop!" Tanner snapped grabbing her shoulders and shaking her slightly. "It's doesn't benefit either of us for you to lose your temper! Pull yourself together, and watch your mouth." They ducked as a bullet bounced off the dozer splintering a pallet above their heads._

"_Look at this! This whole thing is fucked up!" Paige yelled over the deafening reverberation of gunfire. "We're dropping like flies!"_

"_We need to get back to the gate. We're sitting ducks out here." The dramatic groans of people taking bullets sporadically filtered over the sounds of guns clicking. Tanner looked around and pointed over Paige's shoulder. "There. We run to that first stack of pallets. Go."_

_Paige looked left and scanned the area, then looked right, nodding at Tanner. Gun at the ready, she ran. With Tanner close on her heels, she fired until her gun clicked jumping over obstacles and dead bodies, ducking behind the pallets taking refuge. "Shit! I'm out. I used my last clip." Tanner looked at the open chamber of her gun frozen open in the 'Hey, I'm empty!' state, then glanced back at his. Holding his gun up and removing his clip, he swore under his breath and jammed the magazine back into the gun. He had one bullet left in the chamber._

"_Don't worry about it. I've got enough. It's not that far from here. If we can get around the east side of the building, there's far too much cover and debris for anyone to shoot us. Run through the pallet maze here and we're home free." Tanner hoped he divulged more confidence than he felt. _

"_That's your plan?" Paige gave him an incredulous look._

"_Yes."_

"_To go through the gauntlet?"_

_He locked her eyes giving her an assurance of stoic determination. "Yes." Paige gulped and looked through the slats."I've got your back, partner." A loud resonating explosion broke through the night. A few screams and a large splash proceeded. "God help us," he whispered under his breath. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. His eyelids flickered open and his eyes flashed black. "Go." He watched his partner jump into the sea of sharks, weaving between junk, careful to avoid detection. As always, he was close behind._

'_Just a few more feet.' Paige kept chanting to herself. Back to the pallet she would scan the area and run, zigzagging to safety. 'Just a few more feet.' The building was so close now. She ran for the next side of cover, immediately freezing, her feet stuck to the ground as if she stepped in wet cement. The mad man stepped out from behind a large tanker, gun raised and ready to fire. A sadistic smile played across his lips. Her eyes widened and she held her breath, watching his finger squeeze the trigger. Tanner jumped out slamming into Paige, blocking her body, his gun firing. Hitting the ground she rolled over in pain, grabbing her arm. She assessed the area for threat, quickly noting the dead gunman. "Tanner…" She turned her friend over, his white shirt rapidly turning scarlet. A new emotion enveloped her as she tugged him into her lap: fear. "Tanner,"_

"_We almost made it, Walker." Tanner spit out as he gasped for air. Blood was dripping down his chin, each breath more labored than the one before._

"_We did make it. We're going to get you home. Hold on." She sat him up as best she could, her own arm dangling limp and useless by her side._

"_You were always more than a partner, Paige."_

"_God, Tanner, don't talk like you're never going to see me again." She looked around and yelled out for help. 'Oh, my god there's so much blood. He can't…does anyone hear me?'_

"_Damn, mole." He gasped as he clasped her hand tightly. The sound of liquid gurgling in his lungs intensified, 'My god, he's drowning.'_

"_Tanner…"_

"_Find him." His grip loosened, Paige screamed into the darkness. His blood saturated her clothing, warming her skin and chilling her soul. Holding her partner close, she continued to scream, her tears spilling onto her motionless friend._

"This whole situation is just one big…fuck me, it's finally hit home. Look at the mess, just look at it."

Paige blinked rapidly, pushing back the tears that had unknowingly formed in her eyes. The flashback was so real, Paige felt like she was reliving the hell. _'Damn you, Tanner,' _she thought, turning her head, reassessing where she was. Joe's arm was draped over her shoulders and an unforgettable smell wafted through the air. "It's horrible." She murmured. The police car was bullet laden and wrapped around a tree. The door had been removed with the jaws of life. Eddie never had a chance. Another police car was smoldering a short distance down the road with its front tire bent under and the windshield shattered. She shook her head to clear the old memories from her mind, mentally kicking herself for losing control. "Poor, Eddie."

Joe gave her a squeeze and cleared his throat.

"Where do we go from here?"

"We go find Arnie." Joe said flatly. Grabbing her hand, they walked through the disaster. For as many people and emergency vehicles that were present, the mood could only be described as somber. Arnie was spotted leaning on a vehicle, his head in his hands. Joe dropped Paige's hand and walked over to his solemn friend, placing a hand on his back. Arnie stirred and nodded at Joe.

Joe placed a hand on Arnie's back and the two bowed their heads in silence, a silent mourning for their friend and colleague. "Detective, we don't have a clue." Arnie regained his composure. "I have nothing to give you right now. Damn it all to hell! I see we have finally crossed paths. I'm so sorry it has to be under these circumstances."

"So am I Arnie. So am I."

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The black truck sped through town; Bobby and Stephanie exchanged confused expressions. One minute they were in the hospital joking around about Binkie, the next minute they were sprinting/being dragged to the car. "Ranger?" Stephanie dared to speak. "What's going on?"

Ranger whipped the truck around the corner of Haywood. "Our crazed gunman's joyride turned fatal."

"What does that mean?" Stephanie suddenly felt her stomach knot. Ranger grabbed her hand and squeezed.

"We don't know yet. Only that there was a fatality." Ranger felt Stephanie's hand turn to ice. He pulled into Rangeman and the three of them quickly made it to the elevator, stopping on five. The doors opened and Ranger stepped out. "Report." Bobby went left and Stephanie followed suit behind Ranger.

Vince stood up and shook his head. Tank also stood and motioned to Ranger. "It's bad, boss. The cops lost one tonight."

Stephanie came up quickly and placed her hands on the desk, her eyes big blue saucers. "Who?" She whispered. She felt Ranger's hands grip her shoulders, preparing for the worse.

"Big Dog."

Stephanie felt the chill from her hands run its course through her body. Ranger turned her around, comforting her sobs with his warm frame. "I want everything you have on tonight's activities." Ranger whispered to Tank. He looked around the control room. "I want Brown." Several minutes went by as Ranger let Stephanie run her course. No one dared stop and stare, but bustled around the control room on direct orders to produce anything. "Babe? You okay." He whispered as he stroked her matted curls.

Stephanie sniffled and pulled away, a snot string hanging from Ranger's shoulder to her nose, her mascara a raccoon mess. Ranger wiped her tears with his thumb taking off some of the mascara smear. "I…I think so. I…it…it's just so…so terrible." She sputtered out between sobs.

"I'm sorry, Babe." He wrapped her again. This time she didn't cry, she just wanted to be comforted. "Do you want to go upstairs?" Stephanie shook her head.

"I would rather stay down here, if that's okay."

Bobby approached Ranger and silently waited to be addressed. "Did you record tonight?" Ranger asked. Bobby nodded. "When?"

"I started recording when it first hit the police scanner."

"And?"

"I have the whole incident. Since it was so close and a RangeMan building was involved, I have the entire exchange between the perp and the cops, standard protocol. Wouldn't want to lose my job for slacking." Bobby winked at Stephanie as he pulled up the digital feed.

"I want it."

"Shit." Bobby meant to say to himself, but he muttered it for everyone to hear.

"Problems?"

"This thing is a mess. The incident is recorded inconsistently from…" his fingers flew rapidly over the keyboard, "at least four, possibly five different mics and sources. I'm going to have to sort through the different parts of each one and then manually chrono the recordings. It's all there, just not in the same place." Bobby turned in his chair to face Ranger.

"How long?" Ranger was clearly irritated.

"Two hours tops. Lester, come help an invalid." Lester nodded walking over to the wall of buttons and lights.

"Babe, are you sure you want to be here?" Stephanie seemed significantly calmed for the moment.

"I do. As terrible as it sounds, I guess I'm glad it's not worse. I couldn't imagine having to call my mother because Shirley's husband is dead or the fallout from Joe. He was a good cop, Ranger." She sighed heavily. "He was always there to look the other way." She smiled at this as a tear fell.

"I know, Babe. I'm sorry. Listen, there's nothing you can do at this moment. We can't do anything until Bobby gets the feed up. You'll feel better if you get out of that outfit, or at least wash your face. Why don't you go up to seven and clean up? Come back down and get yourself something to eat."

Stephanie nodded, sniffing her tears back. "That was quite a sentence, Batman. These shoes aren't the most comfortable." She looked at her feet and sighed. "I'll be down in a jiffy." Ranger kissed her hand and she proceeded to the elevator, deciding a quick shower was in order. She stepped into Ranger's apartment and headed to the bathroom. Reaching into the shower, she turned the knobs, letting the steam begin. She glanced at herself in the mirror and shuddered. Dropping her clothes on the floor, she stepped into the warm water, melting the chill that had overcome her. Leaning against the wall, she hung her head, a montage of Eddie flooding her thoughts. She slid down the wall and sobbed. As the steam continuously filled the room, her cries echoed off the walls of the spacious bathroom. She felt devastated and morose. Who would have thought that someone who would laugh at all her mishaps and garbage rolls would be so missed? Stephanie did not hear the soft knock on the bathroom door or notice the door open.

"Stephanie?" A soft voice came.

Stephanie pulled her head up.

"Dear, are you alright in there?"

"Ella?" She said through a soft sob.

"Yes, it's just me. It's been over an hour, I came to see if you were okay in there. Are you?" Stephanie looked around and realized her hands were completely wrinkled.

"Just a minute." Stephanie rubbed her eyes and stood, quickly she soaped and rinsed, turning off the water as she grabbed Ranger's robe off the wall. As she exited the bathroom, the steam followed her out, hazing the apartment.

"I'm sorry, Carlos wanted me to check on you. I see you are still walking, so I'll go." Ella gave a slight head nod and turned.

"No. Please. You don't…I…I would like you stay."

"Oh, sweet thing. There, there." Ella walked over and guided Stephanie to the sofa, consoling her like a lost child. "I'm terribly sorry. And I didn't mean to pull you from your thoughts. There's plenty of hot water so you could have stayed in there as long as you wanted. It's just that Carlos was getting a little concerned."

Stephanie looked up. "He was?"

"Of course he was, Dear. He cares more about you than this entire company." Stephanie just blinked at her, stunned at Ella's words. "This is a terrible loss, such a shock."

"I'm just so devastated, Ella." Stephanie felt the tears begin to fill her eyes.

"Now, now. I know it is still so fresh, and it is difficult. But just remember, we spend so much time remembering the death of a loved one, that we forget to find time to remember how they lived."

Stephanie felt a single tear drop, then smiled at the sweet matron before her. "Thank you, Ella." Stephanie gave the small woman a hug and slouched back into the sofa.

"Oh, don't get me wrong," Ella said shaking a finger, "you can be devastated, but _he_ would want you to remember him for all the good memories." She motioned her hand to the coffee table in front of them. "I brought these up for you. Now, I should go get some snacks for you." She stood and gave Stephanie a warm knowing smile and left.

Stephanie eyed the neatly folded clothing Ella had placed on the table and sighed. Dry and ready to go she pulled on the RangeMan underwear, smirking as she did so, followed by a pair of black warm-up pants and a sweatshirt embroidered with the RangeMan logo. Slipping on a pair of black Pumas, her stomach informed her it was time to retreat back to five. Walking to the elevator, she felt strangely refreshed. Perhaps it was the orgasmic Bulgari shower gel or maybe the wise words of a sweet lady, it didn't matter, she was ready to do her part for Eddie.

The control room was busy with activity as all personnel prepared for Bobby's star attraction. Ranger nodded at Stephanie as she got off the elevator and turned toward the break room. He turned his attention back to Zip. "Is there any more camera footage?"

Zip shook his head. "This is all we can get. Of course we know that the vehicle is stolen. Vince is hacking into a few of the other cameras in the area, but we have nothing but a blur and a really big explosion. The explosion took out most of the cameras in the general vicinity."

"Have you heard anything from the police as to who the man might be?" Ranger eyed the screen and saw nothing but indiscernible images.

"Of course, the police have no idea." Zip said. "The police amaze me." He worked with the resolution, enhancing the still framed pictures but produced nothing.

"Looks like shit. Bobby…"

"Okay, Boss! I got it!" Bobby interrupted Ranger, leaning back triumphantly and patting Lester on the shoulder. "In record time mind you." He was fishing for a compliment but wasn't going to get it from Ranger.

"Bring it up." Ranger ordered. All activity stopped.

"This is the first thing that came through over the scanner." Bobby explained as sound began to filter the room. "You'll hear when we leave the van, then the rest is what transpired between the perp and the police and so forth." The voices of the exchange filled the control room as all present RangeMan personnel listened intently.

Content enough with the snacks she found, Stephanie meandered back to the control room with a bowl of fruit and a nearly finished turkey sandwich. She stood between Lester and Zip licking her fingers as she began to eat some grapes. More negotiations and shouting continued between the perp and the police. "Oh, my god." Stephanie froze and dropped the bowl of fruit. It made contact with the floor, shattering on impact.

Everyone's attention turned to Stephanie, "Babe?"

"Steph, sweetie, you're as white as a sheet." Bobby jumped up from his panel and sat her down in a chair.

Ranger crouched down in front of her. "Babe, are you alright?

Stephanie sat wide-eyed, trying not to hyperventilate and felt her head shoved between her knees. She took a few not-so-calming breaths. "Oh god."

This received several quizzical glances.

Stephanie shot up and looked Ranger square in the face. "I know the gunman, Ranger." Ranger stared at Stephanie in disbelief not even trying to put on his blank face.

"Babe?"

"I…I'd recognize that voice anywhere." She looked around at all the intrigued and blank faces waiting with baited breath. "It's Pinkie."

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**Sooo...Yes no? I really toyed with the idea of 'hanging' this chapter and want everyone to know that I was super nice and ultimately decided to put in the last sentence and not leave you hanging. However, since I killed off Eddie, I didn't want to be completely hated! Leave a review, let me know what you think, I really love your feedback and reviews just knowing y'all are reading and enjoying it!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Wow! Special thanks to all that reviewed and faved and PM, it's really encouraging!**

_Stephanie shot up and looked Ranger square in the face. "I know the gunman, Ranger." Ranger stared at Stephanie in disbelief not even trying to put on his blank face._

_"Babe?"_

_"I…I'd recognize that voice anywhere." She looked around at all the intrigued and blank faces waiting with baited breath. "It was Pinkie."_

* * *

The control room silenced at Stephanie's revelation. Ranger held her hands, still crouching, he searched her face. "You're certain?"

Stephanie nodded shakily, "Oh, god! And I was in his house! He seemed so pleasant and we carried on an amiable conversation and when I went back after…" Stephanie gasped. "Ranger! When I went to pick him up on Thursday he said he couldn't come in for three days! If only I had taken him in then…"

"Ssssh. Babe, don't think like that. You didn't know. Tank, pull up everything you can on Diego Chavez, known alias Pinkie."

"Ranger, what do we do? What do I do?" Stephanie looked lost and unsure twirling a damp curl around her finger. Ranger had his blank face on as he sat contemplating the situation.

"First, it's the middle of the night and the cops are still going to be out in full force at the accident sight. We should give them through the night and the morning to exhaust all their resources and information about tonight's incident. Second, where are you staying tonight?"

Stephanie blinked at Ranger expecting him to have maybe answered some part of her question. "Uh...uh…I…don't know?" Stephanie shook her head, confused.

"Do you want me to take you back to Morelli's?" Ranger was emotionless.

"Ummm. I sort of told him I wasn't going to stay there so long as…" She trailed off, looking at the floor. "Oh!" Suddenly interested in the shattered bowl, she bent down to gather the larger pieces.

"Babe," a warning tone was behind this one.

"Look at this mess!"

"As long as what?"

Stephanie was silent, "_She's _staying there!" Ranger contemplated her words.

"Bobby, why don't you drive Stephanie back to her apartment."

Bobby was leaning back in his chair his arms behind his head. "No can do, Boss, I'm on drugs."

"I'll do it!" Lester jumped up so zealously he swiped Bobby's chair clean out from under him. "Oops!"

"Oh, shit!" Bobby tumbled backwards and smacked onto the floor. "Santos you bastard! What the hell!" Bobby dragged himself off the ground and rubbed his head. He ran his hand across his neck and checked his fingers. No blood. "Damn good thing I didn't pull these stitches. I'd have made you my Betsy Ross bitch to sew me back up."

Ranger cleared his throat, "Ladies," Bobby and Lester stopped their bantering and snapped into business mode.

"Hey," Stephanie piped in, "I'll drive myself home. I have the X6."

"I don't think so, Babe. Pinkie was your skip, I don't want you to go by yourself."

"It's…"

"It's not up for discussion." Ranger said flatly.

"I'll take her, Rangeman." Tank stood and placed a hand on her shoulder. Stephanie gave a resigned sigh and nodded. Ranger took her hand and stood her up. "I will pick you up tomorrow morning at seven."

"No! Ranger! What was all that crap about the police needing time to exhaust their resources?"

"They don' have that many resources, Babe." Stephanie threw him her best bitch look. "I'll pick you up at 8:30 and I'll let you know what we need to do from there."

"Fine. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tank, take her down to her car and drive her home." Tank acknowledged and whisked her away to the garage. Once the floor was clear of Stephanie, Ranger got to work. "I want Pinkie's information in the next fifteen minutes. I want to know where he shit's at night, and why the police didn't tag this guy." Ranger sat in a chair staring at the monitor, his fingers steepled under his chin, his gaze focused, the clock ticking.

000000

"Yeah?"

"I'm so sorry, Joe."

Joe inhaled slowly. "You heard?" The clamor in the background made it very difficult to discern his voice.

"Mmhmm. It's terrible."

"You can only imagine the shit I have to do with this, Cupcake."

"I understand. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Probably so."

Stephanie hung up the phone as Tank pulled up next the door. "Damn, that never happens to me, Tank. Must be RangeMan parking karma." She mumbled as she walked to her building. Tank walked up the stairs and stopped in front of her door. He placed his hand in front of Stephanie to stop her and drew his gun. Stephanie swallowed. There are very few things scarier than a giant near seven-foot tall muscular black man holding a gun, but at that moment, Stephanie couldn't think of anything. Tank pushed the door and it swung open. Stephanie gulped and sighed "damn locks" and stood at the threshold watching as Tank went through her apartment. He stopped at the coffee table and bent down. He looked at Stephanie then back at the table as he pulled out his phone.

"Wait, Tank! What is it?" Stephanie charged into the apartment to where Tank was standing. Before he could block her view, Stephanie saw the photographs on the table simultaneously bending over to dry heave. Tank pressed "send" and lightly pushed Stephanie onto the sofa, placing her head between her knees over a wastebasket.

"We have a situation."

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It had been several hours since Paige and Joe arrived on the accident sight, the lights were still blaring, and now the news vans had arrived. It was turning into an absolute zoo. "Too many chiefs and not enough indians." Arnie said to Joe. Joe nodded and looked over at Paige who was warming over a cup of coffee, practically soaked through with rain. "There's not much we can do but just walk around, Morelli." Joe gave him a chagrined look as he watched the reporters attempt to shield themselves from the rain while still remaining pretty for the camera.

"A bunch of gossip sharks. I hate news vans. They have less information than we have, and they're going to be here all night running the same reel." He swung his arm feeling a slight pain where his bandage was. "Fuck." He rubbed his arm and pulled a little plastic package out of his pocket. EMT Derick had given him a little pack of two Vicodin if the numbing stuff wore off before he got home. He thought _'What the hell, my head is killing me too,'_ and popped them into his mouth.

"How's the arm?" Arnie asked, genuine concern behind his question.

Joe shrugged, "I'll live. What are they doing about this at the station?" Joe shoved his hands in his pockets, turning away from the vans.

"They are running the audio tapes from the building confrontation. Apparently the video footage recording from the patrol cars is all shit because of the explosion, so we still have no visuals. We'll know more tomorrow. They're going to pull the feeds from the local businesses and see if they can't get a visual of this guy."

"Damn it, it's always tomorrow!" Morelli began to pace like a ravaged animal. Suddenly, he stopped. His mouth tightened as he watched the scene unfold before him. "Who the hell is that?" He whispered more to himself. Paige had suddenly turned around to see an incredibly fit looking man with black hair hanging over his ears and light brown almost overly tan skin offer her an umbrella. Like a school child, she embraced him and gushed like a group of girls in the ladies in room.

"Morelli. Detective." No response. "Hey, Joe." Joe snapped back to reality and looked at Arnie. "I think it may be time to call it a night. There's nothing more for you to do here. We'll brief again tomorrow. Go home."

"I think you're right." He slapped Arnie on the back and walked impetuously to Paige.

"…a few more days." Paige apparently had apparently found her resolve.

"Sorry, Gunner, this whole situation has turned to shit quicker than anyone anticipated, so _they_ sent me earlier…" The man stopped and assessed Joe as he stopped next to Paige.

"Oh! Joe! Are you done with Rupp?" Joe felt himself very much on the guard as he acknowledged Paige.

The man extended his hand, "Slater Garomin." Recognition befuddled Joe as he tried to place the man, grasping his hand firmly. "ATF."

Slap! _'What the hell was I thinking? Good god, I'm an adult and in a relationship, I shouldn't have felt…what was it? Threatened? Jealous? Damn!' _Joe mentally cleared his head. "Joe Morelli."

"Ahh, Paige's partner. I've heard nothing but good things since she arrived in Trenton." Slater said.

Joe still felt ruffled and reared like he was in a cockfight. "I wasn't expecting to meet you for a few more days."

Slater sighed, "Neither was I."

"He just arrived. We haven't even caught up. When did you actually land in Trenton?" Paige looked at her watch; it was fast approaching one in the morning.

"Actually, I drove. I was supposed to fly out of DC at ten tonight, but there's a storm from the south that's been creeping up the coast and they figured the flights would be grounded. I ended up leaving this morning and arrived in Trenton around seven. It wasn't a terrible drive." Slater stretched and looked around. "I'm already checked in with the office and the hotel."

Morelli gave a perplexed look, "I thought you were coming in from Miami?"

"Nope, I'm a Washington guy. I was stationed in Miami for about two years with the ATF there, but my main concourse is DC. You guys want to go somewhere? We can all catch up, fill in, blah, blah, run the ropes?"

Paige beamed, "I think that's a great idea. Where are you staying?"

"Marriott."

"Pppht! Sorry, but that's just too funny. Ol' Donald is why I'm not at the Marriott." Paige laughed and hooked Morelli's elbow walking to his Explorer. This small action eased his testosterone as he opened the door for her.

"Well, the government isn't exactly particular about accommodations, even if it involves hotels where dead bodies are found in one's bed. I'll follow you guys."

"Sure, just for an hour or two."

"What? An hour or two? You're breaking down in your old age, Paige."

Paige decided against the bitch look and instead looked to Morelli. "Your place or the Marriott bar?"

"I'm following you." Slater removed his keys and unlocked his gray Dodge Durango.

Paige got a shrug from Joe, "Sure, Slate, follow us. Tomorrow's going to be a hell of a day."

Slater looked around the sight and sadly shook his head. "I'm sorry guys. This never should have happened. It never should have escalated this far."

They started their respective vehicles and took off. Joe said nothing as he drove the familiar streets of Trenton. Paige broke the silence. "I don't know how to feel, Joe."

"About?"

"What not about! I have experienced and exhausted almost every emotion a human is capable of having tonight. Every last one." She leaned her head back and sighed deeply. "Eddie should be at the forefront of everything and I'm so fucked up on the inside I don't know whether I should roll up in a ball in the corner or dive in!"

"Paige," Joe furrowed his brow as he contemplated what to say, "I'm not going to ignore what happened between you and me. My god, it was something, and it was real. I might sound like an ass, but Eddie has now become priority number one. I know that you can understand the trepidation that is going to burden the department, and I'm grateful you are here to help."

"Joe, I don't want to pretend that you and me didn't happen tonight as those are emotions and things I haven't experienced in a long time. You mean something to me, Joe, but you're right, Eddie comes first." She looked out Trenton soggy and covered in rain.

"Hey, what's up with Gunner?"

Paige smiled, "I had a tendency to shoot first, ask questions later, so that was the name I bequeathed. Too much bureaucracy for that now."

The entourage arrived at Joe's house. He didn't feel like driving home in the pouring rain at three or so in the morning, leave that up to Slater. They all walked up to the door and as it swung open, a mop of a dog bounded out and ran to the neighbors yard.

"Smart dog." Slater smirked as they walked into the house. Bob gamboled back in and shook out the water on the hall.

"Tell me about it, Bob. I see you're dry." Joe motioned to Slater, "Let me go throw on something that's not wet and we'll go from there." Paige nodded in agreement, she too was wet. Several minutes later, they both emerged with warm dry clothes.

They settled into the living room, beers in hand. Slater looked around, "I guess I'll go first. Apparently it was a good thing I drove since the airport did cancel my flight." He leaned forward in his seat and dangled the beer between his knees, gripping the neck with this thumb and index finger. He took a swig and released his news. "We're no closer to getting anything on this case. Since the guns moved here activity has exploded, but information, leaks, leads, and snitches have been null. Crime establishments are not this organized, so we are completely nonplussed. I'm on board with Paige here, remove yourself from it all to find out the truth." He downed the rest of his beer.

"Hopefully the department will have something for us tomorrow. This shit has to have a loose wire somewhere." Joe leaned back and ran his hands through his hair, standing it up on end. "It's only a matter of time before we get our break."

Paige and Joe filled Slater in on the rest of the activities that he didn't already know. Suddenly, Joe stared at his beer and then at Paige and back at the beer. "Whoa."

"Joe?" Paige wrinkled her brow. "What's wrong?"

"I guess they're serious when they say drugs and booze don't mix."

"Oh, shit! Did you take something?"

"Yeup!" He popped the 'p' and looked around wide-eyed, standing up. "Well, I think…"

Paige cut him off and pushed him down onto the sofa, "Slater, maybe we should call it a night. You know where the station is?" He nodded gathering his coat and patting Bob on the head. "We'll see you tomorrow at 7:30 at the station." She glanced back at Morelli who by now was nearly passed out on the couch.

"He going to be okay?" Slater looked over Paige's shoulder.

"Yeah, we'll take the bandage off and see how it's healing tomorrow. It's just been one of those nights. Bye."

Slater dipped his head and squeezed her shoulder. Paige stood at the door and watched after him as he popped his umbrella up and ran to his car. Paige turned back to find Joe out on the sofa. Clicking the door closed she walked back to his sleeping corpse. "Lucky bastard." She threw a blanket over him and climbed the stairs.

000000

The tires must have lost at least an inch of rubber as the Turbo peeled out of RangeMan's garage. In record time, Ranger was sprinting up the steps of Stephanie's apartment standing next to his right hand man. Tank nodded at him as he entered the apartment. Stephanie was now supine on the sofa with a moist cloth on her head.

"Tank,"

"I don't know, Boss. Obviously they couldn't have been here too long given the circumstances. They look like they were printed off a personal printer." Tank handed Ranger the photographs.

"She saw them?" He tilted his head to the couch and Tank nodded. "Shit. Babe?" Stephanie mumbled something and Ranger knelt down beside her. "You doing okay?"

Stephanie removed the cloth. She looked ghastly and had a green tinge to her swollen tear stained face. "Why? Goddamn it! It's always me! What kind of sicko does this kind of thing, huh? Does he think that I'm not going to notice? That I'm not going to care? Just walk around nonchalantly as if the accident never happened? Fuck!"

Before she could rant any further, Ranger sat her up and gave her a warm embrace. "It's okay, Babe." He pulled her back and she could feel his eyes boring through to her soul. "What do you want to do?" Stephanie blinked at his words, not immediately responding. Her lips separated to say something, but no words came out. Ranger stood and talked quietly to Tank occasionally glancing back at Stephanie. She continued to gape like a hungry goldfish. "Did you decide?"

"I…I don't understand." She finally mumbled. Ranger raised an eyebrow. "What is there to decide, Ranger?"

Ranger bit the inside of his cheek. "I'm not going to call the police right now. Even if you wanted me too, you and especially them are not going to be in a mood to handle this," he waved his arm to the pictures, "as efficiently and professionally as they should." Stephanie nodded wryly. "What do you want to do, Babe?"

"Do you have a list of suggestions, because I re…really can't think of anything to decide."

Ranger internally sighed, "Do you want to stay here and pretend like you didn't find the pictures until the morning? Do you want me to take you back to Joe's house? Do you want to come back to Haywood with Tank and me?"

Stephanie contemplated the options, "What's the catch behind each one?"

"There isn't one."

"There always is." She wiped the damp cloth across her face, feeling the nauseating wave of Eddie surfacing again. "What if…I go to Joe's?

"Tank will drop you off."

"That's it? No catch?" Stephanie raised both eyebrows, curious.

"Nothing." Ranger said flatly.

"Umm…What if I want to stay here?"

"Then Tank will stay here with you and will call the cops in the morning when you wake up."

"See, I told you there was a catch. Why don't I…well…how about…shit…"

"Babe, it's not that hard of question. What's it going to be?"

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**Press the button and review! My muse can go to any home. Where should Steph go? The quicker she goes to sleep, the faster the police get the photos, and the faster I can write! Who knows what the police are going to think!**


	18. Chapter 18

****First off- wow! Thank you all so much for your feedback and input on the last chapter. And to all who have been faving and alerting! I loved it and appreciated it greatly! Here's the next installment! Second, this chapter is a bit longer, but I didn't want to break it up and leave y'all hanging! Third- please keep the reviews coming!****

* * *

Stephanie slumped back into the couch and threw the damp cloth onto the table, crossing her arms over her chest. "Tank can take me to Joe's."

Ranger nodded and picked up the cloth as he walked it over to the kitchen. "I don't want Joe to bring you here in the morning. I will pick you up tomorrow morning at seven and…"

"Hey! What happened to all the 8:30 business back at RangeMan?! Are you reneging?"

Ranger inhaled a little more air than usual, "That was before you found the pictures, Babe. I will pick you up at Morelli's at 8:00 and we will come here to find the pictures."

"Don't you think the cops might be suspicious, especially Joe, if we call them at eight in the morning. I'm not up! I'm never up!" Ranger kept his blank face on but irritation flashed across her eyes.

"Babe, I'll be here at 8:30."

"And you should bring donuts too."

"Babe,"

"No, because it needs to look real."

"Babe, donuts are not going to make it look more real. I'm sure everything you need is at Morelli's."

"Not exactly."

"That's fine too. Tank, I'll see you back at RangeMan." Ranger nodded to Tank as he exited the apartment. Stephanie let out a sigh as the door clicked closed. She heard the Turbo start up and leave.

"Can't even get free lousy donuts." Stephanie stood and faltered a bit. Tank grasped her arm supporting her like a stray feather.

"Are you ready, Steph?" Tank took in her appearance.

"Ready as I'll ever be." She glanced over to the table and cringed at the photos. She felt Tank move her away from the table and photos, his gesture one of protection. Before she knew it, she was strapped into the X6. How'd that happen? Stephanie felt herself zone out as she watched the empty Trenton streets pass by. She blinked and realized they had stopped. She looked out the window across the street and recognition smacked her in the face as she took in the facing of Joe's house. "Oh! We're here." Stephanie unbuckled her belt and looked over at Tank.

"You want me to walk you up?"

Stephanie grabbed the door handle and smiled at his offer, "No thanks, Tank, I…" She trailed off as she watched the front of the house, suddenly feeling a deep swell of fresh nausea. She watched Paige open the door and stand at the threshold with a man Stephanie had never seen before. He squeezed Paige's shoulder and ran with his black umbrella to a charcoal looking Durango with Maryland plates. Huh? Maryland? Tank watched Stephanie's reaction to the scene. The door closed and Paige disappeared. Stephanie bit her bottom lip and swallowed hard. Her fingers slipped down from the door handle. She felt a warm large hand rest on her forearm. "Tank?"

"Yeah, Bombshell?"

"Can we go back to RangeMan?" Tank felt a sympathy smile crease his face as he solemnly nodded. He pulled away from the curb and pointed the beamer in the familiar direction of Haywood. They parked in the structure without muttering a word since Slater Street and stood silently in the elevator. As the doors slid open on five, they were met with conversational din, activity, and Ranger. Tank stepped to the side allowing Ranger to step onto the elevator. Ranger imperceptibly nodded to his friend who stepped onto the control room floor. Ranger pushed the button for seven and paused before unlocking his apartment. Stephanie silently stood in the lift behind him, the doors still open. He turned around taking in her appearance, her head slightly hung, and understood.

"Steph?" The only response of acknowledgement were her eyes shifting up. "Do you want to stay up here or in a vacant apartment on four?" Stephanie pursed her lips and clenched her jaw. Ranger pressed the fob to unlock his apartment and reached out, pulling her off the elevator. "All business, Babe. You'll get a good night's sleep here and it will be necessary for tomorrow." He led her into the dark room and slid a hand across her hair and face. "I have work to finish." He kissed her forehead and walked to the door.

Stephanie just stood there staring at the form walking to the door, the sound of her breathing very loud and heavy. She snapped out of her trance, "That, bitch." Ranger stopped, his hand resting on the doorframe. "Ranger, you're not even going to ask why I'm here?"

"Babe, your face said everything. I'm not one to pry. Besides, what happens with you and the cop is all you." Stephanie nodded, he looked, tired?

"It's just, I don't know what to do. I get upset about her there, and yet I come here…I just…I don't like her!" She threw her hands in the air.

Ranger turned around calmly, "Neither do I, Babe. Unfortunately, we have to do things we don't like with people we don't like. Occasionally, we have to do it on a consistent basis, but when that happens, it's for the one's we care for the most." With that, he said goodnight and went down to the control room.

Stephanie hated feeling like a hypocrite, but for some reason she just did. '_However, I'm not doing anything with Ranger, but maybe Paige isn't either?'_ "That's right Stephanie, jump to conclusions! Ugh." Frustrated, she walked to the closet and took a shirt from Ranger's shelf and dropped her clothes on the floor. She walked to his bedroom and climbed into the bed. The luxurious feel and cool silky sensation of the premier sheets washed over her, enveloping her in an orgasmic state of sleep. All unpleasant thoughts fled her mind and she smiled at the serenity she felt, instantly entering comatose mode.

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"That's the way it will be."

Silence hovered across the control room. Lester stepped forward, "Rangeman, are you sure? I mean…"

"Santos, we'll do whatever it takes."

"But it's the cops _and_ her, man. You above anyone else here doesn't need to be reminded…"

"It's done." Ranger spoke with finality and everyone went back to their tasks. Tank motioned to Ranger, pulling him to the side.

"I'm you're friend Carlos, and you're right hand man. I don't want you to jeopardize…"

"I know. And I appreciate your candidness, Tank. I just," Ranger ran a hand through his short hair, standing it up on end, "can't shake it, it is the right thing to do this time."

"I figured as much, but I just want you to know that I support you."

"My friend, there's something terribly wrong. I've done op missions that have smelled fresher than this and that's saying something." Ranger whispered deathly.

"I've never doubted your judgement, just…try to stay removed." Tank had a sense of warning in his tone.

"I understand."

00000

Feeling a sense of fog and the bed dip, Stephanie opened her eyes and stared blearily at the figure before her. She kicked her legs around the bed and stretched, "Ranger?" She felt a warm hand brush the hair off her face and rest on her cheek.

"Time to get up, Babe."

"Huh? But…wait. Aren't you?" She looked around. "What time is it?" Stephanie sat up on her elbows confused. "Did…"

Ranger gave a deep chuckle, "It's 8:25."

Stephanie's eyes got wide and looked aghast. "Ranger! How could you?" Ranger raised an eyebrow, unmoved. "You let me sleep in!"

"I told you I would pick you up at 8:30. Since you are here, I'm technically early." Stephanie frowned at this. "Did you want be up earlier?"

"No, I would have liked the additional five minutes." She smiled and turned over. "Alright, give me fifteen minutes and I'll be ready to go." She flipped the covers off and padded to the bathroom taking a quick shower. Deciding that her clothes were clean enough from last night, she picked them up off the floor and through her hair up into a high messy ponytail. Ranger was standing by the kitchen table, arms folded across his chest. A slight flick of his wrist indicated the time and he nodded in approval.

"Not bad, Babe." Stephanie smiled proudly at this then looked at the table with granola and bananas, and the cup of coffee in Ranger's hand. He couldn't help giving her a wolf grin, handing her the cup of coffee. "Let's go find some pictures." He could see the look of disappointment on her face as she eyed the fruit. She greedily drank the coffee and submissively followed him to the elevator.

The door pinged and Stephanie looked confused as she saw all the black cars. "What, not stopping at the control room?"

"Everything is already in order. I handled everything we needed while you were sleeping." Ranger walked her to the Turbo.

"Any new developments from the police? Pinkie? Eddie? Inform…" Stephanie babbled and Ranger held his hand up.

"Steph." He opened the passenger door and pulled her close. "I think you shouldn't ask such questions on an empty stomach. Let's get going." She stepped past him and crouched down, squealing at what was on the front seat.

"Oh, you're a god sent!" She whipped around and hugged Ranger and quickly climbed in putting the box of donuts from the seat on her lap. Ranger closed the door and smiled to himself starting up the purring engine. One quick glance at her pleasure with the Boston crèmes gave him the satisfaction she would be okay today.

"Thank you, Ranger. This is just what I needed."

"It had to be authentic."

"Damn, skippy!" She sucked the filling out and closed the box on the remaining five donuts as Ranger parked next to the front door of her building. "I'm not going to ask." She stepped out with her box in hand and they walked up to her apartment door. Ranger did a scan and saw the pictures were still on the table. Stephanie was standing with the box of donuts looking like she was a door to door donut saleswoman. Ranger pulled out his phone. "Wait! What about Pinkie?" Ranger contemplated this and put his phone back in his pocket.

"When the cops get here, it's only going to be about the pictures. Unfortunately, RangeMan has a meeting with TPD this afternoon. Since we were at the original incident last night, they want our input. You are going to accompany me to the meeting. You, Babe, are the ace of trump. The police ran everything. They have the same recorded information as us but they have produced nothing because no one has really carried on conversations with this guy. Once you give them the knowledge of Pinkie, we'll leave and let them run their course. We'll continue to do our search as well."

"Wh…what do you mean, 'our search'?" Stephanie looked at him skeptically, her spidey sense tingling. "What are you not telling me? Are you getting involved?" Stephanie set the box of donuts next to Rex's cage, staring at Ranger.

"Babe,"

"Oh, god, not that tone. Ranger, are _you_ getting involved in this?" Stephanie reiterated, hoping to hear the answer she wanted.

Ranger clenched his left fist. "Babe,"

"No, Ranger! Not with Paige's involvement! You know she's out to get you."

"Stephanie, RangeMan _is_ getting involved. TPD has asked us to assist with the information investigation. However, we still have the final say as to what information is sent to the police. We will give them any and all information they specifically request from us. That's it. I am in charge and I have very stringent stipulations."

"But…"

"But I am here this time. I am present to monitor all information incoming and outgoing.

"But…" Stephanie was feeling flustered and suddenly her thoughts turned to last night, remembering what Ranger said. "Oh, shit, Ranger."

"Chief Larson called me asking for the meeting and requesting RangeMan's assistance. If it weren't for some psycho leaving you these," he pointed to the coffee table, "I would have said no." Ranger sensed Stephanie's uneasiness. "This is the way it's going to be."

"I still don't like it."

Ranger retrieved his phone again. "Are you ready for this?"

000000

Paige woke to the screeching of her alarm and groaned at the time. She threw a pair of sweats on over her panties and stumbled downstairs rubbing her face. Walking over to the sofa, she saw Joe in the same position as last night with the exception of Bob under his arm. She smiled and motioned for Bob as she opened the back door. Bob complied and Paige stooped down over Morelli.

"Joe," no movement. "Joe." More firm, still no luck. "Joe!" An eye popped open, then was covered by the blanket. "Come on, Joe. We have to get down to the station." He rolled onto his back and let out a long sigh.

"Uuuuh. I feel so…" He peeked out from under the blanket to see Paige with her arms folded. "What time is it?"

"6:15"

"Uhhg…I think…hmmm…I need coffee." Joe stumbled up from his makeshift bed and found the coffee machine. He swung his shoulder around and rubbed his bandage. "Well shit." He placed his elbows on the counter and balanced his head on his thumbs. Paige sauntered over and timidly looked around the corner, waiting. "I thought it was all a nightmare. But I woke up and realized that with this bandage it's all fuckin' reality! Eddie, you, me…was Slater here last night?" Paige nodded. "Hmm, I sort of remember. Alright, let's get moving."

"I let Bob out."

"Excellent."

Two showers and thirty minutes later the two detectives were driving to TPD after a quick stop at Tasty Pastry. The atmosphere was somber as the news of Big Dog spread like a wildfire. Joe and Paige walked across to the admitting desk where Benny Gaspick was shoveling paperwork.

"Has Agent Garomin arrived?" Paige asked. Benny looked at her like she had horns popping out of her perfectly flipped out hair.

"You see a guy in a suit walk through here?" Joe asked leaning on the desk.

"Oh! Yeah, he walked down to, uh, conference room two." Benny pointed down the hall. Joe slapped the desk twice and grabbed Paige's hand.

"Thanks, Ben." They walked down the hall to conference room two and found Slater and Larson engaged in conversation. "Hey." The two men looked up. "You look like shit, Chief. Respectable shit that is."

"I feel it. This department is caving in on itself with this damn incident, the paperwork is up the whazoo, we have to bring in outside help, and there's a funeral to arrange. I'm glad it's only shit that I look like, Detective." Larson commented as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"Glad to hear it. How's Costanza?"

"He's stable, which is all we can hope for right now."

"Good. So what did tech bring up on this guy last night?" Joe took a chair and turned it around, sitting down next to Slater. Paige slid a chair next to the Chief and Morelli taking her seat.

"Nothing."

This received three blank faced stares. "You're kidding?" Joe leaned back and took a deep breath. "You've run everything? Voice recognition, facial recognition? ATM cameras?"

"There's nothing detective. That little bomb he made blew out all the video on the cars, we have no visual. As far as everything else, we have one picture but the mini mart resolution is so poor and small we can't see anything."

"And you've tried blowing it up and increasing the resolution?" Paige asked.

"Of course, when we do that, the guy doesn't even look human. Looks like something that escaped from Area 51. I have a few files for you guys to run through. Several deaths from last night and another unrelated homicide. We have a meeting at 1100. Mandatory."

"Meeting, Chief?" Joe looked up from the file he was handed.

"Just be there, Detective." Larson stood up and stretched. "Slater, stick with these two until then." Slater gave a salute and the three huddled together.

"It's probably just a recap of last night." Paige suggested.

Joe shook his head and rubbed his hair. "No, something else."

"Morelli! You're not going to believe this." Arnie yelled as he entered the room with Chief Larson. "Unfuckingbelievable, Joe."

Morelli felt a tightening in his stomach and he popped a Tums. "Stephanie?"

"Yeup, we're sending a team over now."

"What is it?"

"Pictures." Arnie said shaking his.

"I'm on it. Paige, Slater, let's go." The three hopped into Joe's SUV and drove to Stephanie's apartment. Joe pulled to the curb and immediately recognized the black Porsche sitting by the door. The three walked up the stairs down to Stephanie's apartment, walking in to see Stephanie sitting on the couch talking to Mickey and Gazarra. Ranger was leaning against the wall, arms folded, assessing.

"I see you're dressed for Halloween again." Joe commented to Ranger. "What the hell is this, Cupcake?"

"Joe! Oh god! We got here and found these on my coffee table." Stephanie felt she was doing a really poor job of acting and pointed to the coffee table. Her eyes trained to his T-shirt and exposed bandage on his muscular arm. Paige handed Joe a glove and he picked up the pictures.

Flipping picture after picture, anger began to swell. The first one showed a crumpled police car, he flipped to the next one, and it zoomed in on blood smeared window, the next showed a very lifeless, bloody, and glass-covered Big Dog with his head leaning against the door pierced by a tree limb. The next one was Carl pinned against the door by the same branch. Picture after picture showed the grisly scenes of the accident "Where the hell did these come from? These were taken before the police even arrived. And why are they on your coffee table?" Joe felt anger swelling.

Arnie stepped up and placed a hand on Joe shoulder, taking the photos. "We obviously don't know, Joe." Paige took the photos from Arnie as he continued, "Right now, Ms. Plum needs to be in a guarded situation until we figure this out. Perhaps someone is stalking her. Perhaps someone is trying to scare her. We don't know."

"But…" Stephanie began to object but saw Ranger slightly shake his head at her, halting anything more.

"Guarded?" Joe asked raising his eyebrows.

"Some type of protective measure for the time being. We'll figure something out as we discuss more details at the meeting."

"What? Protective measures at the…" Joe was confused.

"Oh god. Look at these Slater." Paige grimaced and handed the pictures over to Slater. Ranger still stood next to the wall, assessing the situation and new arrival.

"Cupcake, you seem to be taking this very well. Were you here last night?" Joe leaned down, looking her in the eyes.

Stephanie felt a twinge of distress growing and shoved it down. "N…no. I…I…No, I was…" Liar. Liar. Stephanie looked up at Ranger with pleading blue eyes. Sensing her uncomfortableness Ranger spoke for the first time since the police arrived.

"She stayed at RangeMan."

Joe heavily worked the muscle in his jaw standing to match Ranger's brawn. "Did she now?"

"That's correct."

"I was just so shaken up from…from the wreck and Eddie's death, I couldn't stay here by myself." Stephanie discovered newfound courage and brought up the tears, which weren't entirely fake. "You said that you would see me tomorrow, so I thought you would be out late on the case again." Joe just stared and Paige and Slater exchanged looks. "Ranger was kind enough to offer me an apartment at RangeMan last night." _'Okay, so it wasn't a total lie! He did offer an apartment, I just stayed in his bed. I don't even know where he slept last night.'_

"He did?" Joe looked stunned. Slater found the box of donuts on the counter and lifted the lid.

"Can I have one of these? They look great!" He traced his fingers around a Boston crème.

Stephanie just noticed Slater. "Just one, and no more than that. Who are you?" Eager to turn the conversation away from last night, she focused on Slater. Mickey, Eddie, Arnie, and Paige were discussing the pictures.

"Slater Garomin, ATF." He walked over with a donut in one hand and extended his free hand. Ranger narrowed his eyes only enough for Stephanie to notice he wasn't pleased. "I just arrived from DC, I've worked with Detective Walker in the past." He slightly rolled the 'r' on 'worked' and reminded her of a lighter colored Antonio Banderas.

"I see." She took his hand and eyed the donut.

"Alright guys, let's get out of here." Arnie called out. "ETA twenty minutes until mandatory meeting. Mickey, Eddie, take the pictures back and let forensics run anything on them. You three," he pointed to Paige, Joe, and Slater, "straight back to the station." He nodded to Ranger and turned to leave.

Joe opened his mouth to speak, "Yes, sir. We'll be there." Paige interjected pushing Joe in the back. He merely nodded and watched the others leave, lagging behind.

"Joe, how's your arm doing." Stephanie stood and gently touched the bandage.

"It's okay. It was sort of a rough night, but you can imagine. Gotta go, mandatory and all." He kissed her hand and left.

Stephanie watched everyone vacate her apartment. She turned around to face Ranger who didn't look pleased, his blank face in partially miniscule readability mode. "Ranger, I…"

"Proud of you, Babe. You did good."

"I lied!"

"No, you didn't tell the whole truth."

Stephanie looked suddenly interested in her intertwined fingers aware of the situation and what they were getting ready to do. "You don't have to do this, you know."

"Yes. I do. Now, let's grace everyone at the station with our presence."

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****Hit the button to review! How do you think Joe is going to react to finding Stephanie and Ranger at the meeting? Steph's got her big information to disclose, and he's already on edge!****


	19. Chapter 19

*****I'm so sorry this was late getting up! The website wouldn't let me download since Thursday! Every computer I tried to upload the story from wouldn't download. Thank you so much all who have given their input and the feedback has been wonderful! Again- all feedback is appreciated. Thanks to all that have been so gracious and to all who have faved and alerted!*****

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_Previously......_

"_Proud of you, Babe. You did good."_

"_I lied!"_

"_No, you didn't tell the whole truth."_

_Stephanie looked suddenly interested in her intertwined fingers. "You don't have to do this, you know."_

_"Yes. I do. Now, let's grace everyone at the station with our presence."_

* * *

"I thought you said the meeting was this afternoon?" Stephanie broke the silence they traveled in since they left her apartment.

"I did."

"But it's eleven. That's morning." She licked the cream off her fingers from the donuts she brought along for the ride. "Actually, it's a little after eleven. What time does the meeting start?"

"Eleven." Ranger acted too nonchalant.

"Ranger! My god! You're late! We're late! I…you are never…"

"You don't think I really _let_ you sleep in, do you?" Ranger asked slyly.

"You! You didn't want the cops hanging around very long! And we are intentionally late! And the donuts? Those were a bribe too!"

"No, Babe, the donuts were for you. Nothing attached."

"Oh. Well, thanks." Stephanie set the box with the remaining two donuts on the floor and slid back into the seat. "So how do I handle this, how do I tell them about Pinkie?"

Ranger put on his blinker and turned the Turbo into the police lot. "They are going to talk about last night, then bring up all the info they have, the recordings and photos. I also have some photos, but nothing that will help them without your information. When they say they have no leads, that's when we step in."

"And if they do have leads?" Stephanie ran her hands through her hair, fluffing her now dry ponytail.

"They won't." They got out of the car and walked into the station. Ranger nodded to Benny and placed his hand on Stephanie's shoulder, steering her to the large briefing room. Ranger stopped at the door and turned Stephanie. Her blue eyes were dancing with nervousness. "It'll be fine."

"Time for our grand entrance." Stephanie took a non-calming deep breath.

"We'll just stay in the back, they won't even notice we're here."

"Ha! You blend in so well." Ranger opened the door and they walked into the room. Chief Larson was up front and nodded slightly to Ranger as he walked in. He signaled for them to sit and kept talking. "So much for blending in." Steph muttered under breath taking a back row seat next to Ranger.

"…still at St. Francis, but his condition is stable. Funeral arrangements are currently under way for Officer Rycker. As far as last night's incident," Larson sighed and images of the police scene popped up on the screen, "we have quite the destruction to deal with and assess." Ranger sat with his arms folded looking slightly amused.

"So what do we have on this guy, Chief?" Dorsey asked

"Just a recording and some shitty photos." Larson flatly replied.

"What do you mean nothing? Nearly every cop on duty was at that building last night." This came from the middle of the room in a displeased tone.

"Nothing, Detective Morelli. We still haven't produced anything other than a shitty camera shot of half a face. The resolution is too poor to bring anything discernable out to the public."

"Why don't you run it through a facial recognition database?"

"As I stated to you earlier, Detective, we have, and came up with nothing. If we have more information, we might be able to run his face through the program again, but only against an alleged photo with better resolution. The system can't pull anything up with the current image."

"I find it hard to believe there is nothing as there was a RangeMan building within the immediate vicinity. That anal ass…"

"I'm glad you have brought RangeMan Securities up, Detective." Larson quickly interjected. "If you would." He raised his hand and did a 'come forward' motion with his fingers to Ranger and Stephanie. Obliging, they stood and walked forward; Stephanie felt her face flush as murmurs filled the room. "I asked RangeMan to assist in this operation and the owner, Carlos Manoso, has graciously accepted my request."

Paige audibly gasped turning in her seat to see Ranger. "What? Are you sh…kidding me?" Joe stood up and saw Ranger walking forward and a mess of curls behind him. "Come on, Chief! What the? Stephanie? Chief, we are perfectly capable as a department that…"

"I understand your concern, but I feel they have resources and security clearances that can eliminate the bureaucratic middleman. They can obtain the information in an efficient and professional manner." Ranger and Stephanie stood next to Larson at the front of the room.

"More like _illegal_ matters." Paige snorted as she pulled on Joe's T-shirt to sit him down. He seemed frustrated and crossed his arms in a childish manner.

"Mr. Manoso, if you could begin."

Ranger instantly snapped into business mode, "I will be brief as my colleague and I have other business to attend." Stephanie gave a quizzical glance to Ranger at the term "colleague" but figured it was another ploy. "First, have you released the information of the photos recovered at Ms. Plum's residence?"

"No, we are still processing them and it looks like they are going to reveal nothing." Chief Larson responded.

Ranger nodded, "RangeMan ran the recordings of last night's exchange between the officers and the suspect at the appliance store and we have…"

"How'd you get the tapes?" Joe interrupted, clearly not concerned about insubordination.

"As you have already identified, Detective, RangeMan was also involved last night and we recorded the exchange. Now," Ranger glared at Morelli who returned an equally deathly gaze, "we have information identifying your suspect." The room erupted with shouts and conversation. Paige, Slater, and Joe all exchanged looks and Joe was already on his feet making his way forward.

"Silence! Stop! Hey!" Chief Larson was yelling but no one was listening and several officers were on their feet waving their arms. Slater was already on his feet following after Joe. Paige realized what was happening and bolted after Slater, jumping over a fallen chair. A loud whistle pierced the air; all activity stopped, Slater blocked Joe's path as Paige caught Joe's shoulder. "Everybody listen! This meeting is adjourned! Everyone is dismissed. You will be briefed when we get more information. Go back to your normal responsibilities or lunch, whatever. I want this room empty!" Larson turned to Ranger, "Mr. Manoso, Ms. Plum, follow me." The room exploded again. They exited out the door at the front of the room, shouts spouting off questions and comments followed Larson and the visitors down the hall.

"Chief, wait!" Joe burst out of the room, the two others in tow. "You can't just leave us hanging back here." He stood in an accusatory pose pointing back at the door. Officers were already trickling out of the two doors engaged in conversation, flooding the hallway.

Larson paused and turned on his heels, his pale gray eyes glimmering, "Detective, I am in charge. And yes, I can." Ranger's eyes darkened and the slightest smug look crossed his face. Larson turned back around and the three of them disappeared around the corner.

"Bastard." Joe sighed.

"Joe, what the hell was that? Did you know they were going to be here?" Paige asked running a hand through her hair and grasping the ends.

"No, I had no idea what this meeting was about. But shit! He brings RangeMan in?" Joe was furious, he turned to Slater his eyes darkening. "What did you discuss this morning?"

"Joe! What kind of question is that?"

"No, it's okay, Paige." Slater put up a hand, "We were discussing last night. He also did tell me about acquiring RangeMan services."

"What, so now you're buddy-buddy with the Chief?" Joe was fuming.

"I'm ATF, okay?"

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?"

"It means that I'm not one of you. Listen, you were kind of out of it last night, but the one thing I did pick up about you is that you are a quick firing asshole. You want the truth about all this shit?" Paige and Joe exchanged bewildered glances before nodding. "I'm here early because TPD wanted me here. Your situation is so faruptheassfucked up you're too involved to see it."

"But…" Paige began.

"Gunner, I know you're concerned as this has the makings of emulating past incidents."

"What about Miami? Does Larson know?" Paige's eyes were deep green with concern.

"I didn't have time to address that with him." Slater said with a hushed tone.

"I think that's pretty damn important for the Chief to know." Paige placed her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, that's why I'm surprised _you _haven't said anything to him. Paige, I know you still hold your suspicions about Manoso, but we need to have stability with _our _investigation."

"Then what's your role?" Joe was now leaning on the wall.

Slater looked around, "I'm going to be doing the same thing I was doing in DC, running shipping records and exports. However, being in Trenton, I will be able to access hard copies from the docks here. Over the last few days I have been picking up discrepancies in shipping logs, port dockings, the works."

"But you didn't mention any of this the other night. In fact, you said everything was a dead end."

"I couldn't be certain if anyone was listening or monitoring my actions. I'm sorry. I had to be discrete. We've both had suspicions about a mole, besides, being away from the office lends greater access to unmonitored information. Isn't that why you are here, Paige?"

Paige nodded. "What about Washington?"

"I will be doing commutes every few days. It's not a big deal and the drive isn't too terrible. Besides, maybe I'll fly a few times." Slater looked up and noticed two figures walking down the hall. "Hmmm."

000000

Larson's tired eyes contemplated the two individuals sitting on the opposite side of his desk. The heater was blowing overhead, but he felt chilled from his own sweat. "Mr. Manoso, you understand I left a shitload of very unhappy people back there?" Ranger didn't respond he just stared back with no emotion. Larson leaned back in his chair his fingers laced behind his head, elbows out, staring at the ceiling. "Alright, tell me what we missed and how you got this information." He was now leaning forward on the desk, waiting.

Ranger unfolded his arms and placed a picture on the desk. "This is a photo taken from the RangeMan security camera of the building next to the appliance store. The suspect came through the back alley."

Larson picked it up, examining the photo. "I'm sorry Mr. Manoso, but this picture is almost as shitty as the one we have from the mini-mart. If we are going to identify and place allegations on someone, I need more than a grainy photo."

"If you notice, it is the full face of the perp."

"But it's still grainier than hell. Where is this going?"

"You stated if you had a better resolution photo, you should be able to run it through your database."

"We need something more definitive and concrete." Larson was starting to feel his patience run thin. "That's not this."

"Sir, if you would…" Stephanie spoke for the first time, giving Ranger a dirty look.

Ranger nodded and gave her a knowing look back. "Sir, Ms. Plum is the one who identified your man."

"Excuse me?"

"That's correct."

"How can you be certain, and who is he?" Larson was all ears now.

"Diego Chavez, alias: Pinkie."

"I…if you, um, check the police records, you'll see that Vincent Plum wrote a bond on him three or four weeks ago. Since he didn't show up for his court date and became FTA, he became was my responsibility to apprehend." Stephanie seemed nervous, but kept it together.

"And you recognize him from this photo?" Larson gave her an incredulous look.

"No, this is the first time I've seen this photo. I immediately knew it was Pinkie from the RangeMan recordings. You see, I've…"

"Sir, if you run a profile through your database on Pinkie, you will be able to confirm the information Stephanie is has provided. Run this photo against Pinkie's mug and you should get a positive ID on the guy. I completely trust Stephanie's judgement." Ranger turned to look at Stephanie then back at Larson. "What about our discussion about protection for Stephanie?"

"What! Protection?" Stephanie suddenly felt the Burg rising.

"Ms. Plum," Larson began, "as part of our arrangement to acquiring services with RangeMan, you will have a bodyguard of sorts with you at all times. When RangeMan cannot for some reason provide you with a companion, then an officer will be called to assist you."

"No! Rang…" Ranger held his hand up and stood. Stephanie scrunched her lips tight and followed suit, straightening her black RangeMan top.

Ranger extended his hand to Larson and grabbed Stephanie's hand with the other, "We will keep in touch. If you'll excuse us." They left the office and walked down the hall.

"Ranger, why…" Stephanie whined, quickening her step.

"Babe, I don't want to discuss this with you right now."

"Ugh! Fine! Then why did you toy with him like that?"

"I had to be sure he was going to believe you."

"I don't understand."

"If you told him that you had multiple contacts with Pinkie and never apprehended him, I don't think he would have looked very kindly towards you." Ranger pointed out.

"Oh."

"You get enough flack from everyone at the department. Now with the death of a colleague, you don't need to have fingers pointed your way." Ranger and Stephanie rounded the corner. Stephanie was contemplating what Ranger said and was actually grateful he stopped her from saying something. Ranger noticed three individuals conversing in the hall and made sure his blank face was on.

"You're always there to make sure to prote…Oh! Uh, hey, Joe. Crazy meeting, huh?" This comment greeted her with silence and three blank stares. "Um, yeah, well, we gotta go." Stephanie and Ranger walked around without another word. Joe murmured something to Slater and Paige and took off.

"Steph, wait!" Joe caught up to them as Ranger held the door open. Ranger whispered something in her ear and walked out to the Turbo. "What's the deal, Cupcake?"

"I don't know what you mean, Joe." Stephanie watched Ranger sit in the car and pull out his phone.

"Hell you do. What's this about the suspect?" Joe had his arms crossed.

"I, uh, don't have any information to dish out."

"I'm going to stand here and believe that you didn't go into the Chief's office and tell him who was responsible for last night?"

"Sure, all we had was photograph. Hey, I have to go." Joe grabbed Stephanie's arm and pulled her close.

"Tell me." His face was serious. "I need to know."

"I…I…" Stephanie looked up and saw Paige and Slater walking up. She leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, "I need to be going. I'll talk to you later." Joe was less than thrilled with her response. He let go of her arm and gave a curt nod watching her climb into the Turbo.

"A live one, huh?" Slater said watching the black car leave the lot.

"You have no idea." Joe turned around to face the two colleagues. "We need to find out what's going on."

"I agree." Paige tilted her head up and bit her lip. "I want to know the real reason why RangeMan is involved."

"It does seem suspicious." Joe ran his fingers through his dark hair. "We'll get the information. But first, how do you know Manoso?" He turned to Slater.

Slater grinned and Paige laughed slightly, then rolled her eyes. He placed a hand on Joe's shoulder, "Let's just say I was in Miami when he got arrested."

"Christ, you were there to? I bet that was classic. Maybe we'll have the opportunity to do it again."

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Stephanie sat silently in the Turbo brewing on the inside on how to address Ranger regarding "protection." As they made their way back to Haywood, she couldn't take it any longer. "Ranger, I need to talk about this now." Ranger just sat in his zone averting his eyes only for a moment to Stephanie. "Do you really think that it is necessary? I mean, you know, to have someone with me all the time?"

"Yes, Babe, I do. I need to know that you are safe." Ranger kept his breathing even, he always hated having this conversation.

"I already have trackers, isn't that enough?" Stephanie was shaking her foot wildly, hoping to win this argument.

"No."

"Come on! You know where I am all the time already. I think you're being a little extreme this time."

"Babe, let's take a look at your skips. You've got Donald, who's head went to visit Walker. Then Pinkie, who decided to terrorize, hit and run. And then someone decides to leave you photos that weren't even released or taken by the police in your apartment?"

"Well, it's just,"

"When they match the photo to Pinkie, they will be able to pull up the intake video and will then match his voice to the recording. The hunt should go quicker but with all this outside help they're bringing in…" Ranger trailed off and parked the Turbo in the garage.

"Do you think this could end up like Miami all over again?" Stephanie's annoyance was now turned to concern.

"We'll see." Ranger got out of the car followed by Stephanie and walked to the elevator. He placed his hand on the cement wall and focused on the elevator threshold.

"Wait. Ranger," Stephanie furrowed her brown and then glared at the back of Ranger's perfectly shaped head. "How come you were able to pull something up a match on that really grainy photo of Pinkie?" Ranger thought for a long while not answering, then stood up straight. "Ranger? Oh my god! You doctored the photo did you?"

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**Thanks for reading all! Leave a review, what do you think?**


	20. Chapter 20

Previously…

"_Do you think this could end up like Miami all over again?" Stephanie's annoyance was now turned to concern._

"_We'll see." Ranger got out of the car followed by Stephanie and walked to the elevator. He placed his hand on the cement wall and focused on the elevator threshold._

"_Wait. Ranger. How come you were able to pull something up on that really grainy photo of Pinkie?" Ranger thought for a long while not answering. "Ranger? Oh my god! You doctored the photo did you?"_

* * *

"Ranger!"

"Babe, it's not like that. That photo did come from the RangeMan camera."

"So?!" The door to the elevator opened and Ranger sighed. He walked in and Stephanie stood outside arms crossed bitch look on. "What you did was illegal!"

"Please, come in the elevator." Ranger asked leaning against the back wall of the elevator car. Using "please," Stephanie's resolve softened and she stepped in, the doors closing behind. "Babe, you're throwing around accusations and I haven't even confirmed anything. I don't do things that are illegal, you can get in trouble for that."

"Then what about the photo?" The doors opened on five and Ranger turned left.

"Brown!" Bobby stood up and Ranger raised his hand over his head signaling for him to come to his office. The three of them walked in and Ranger closed the door. Stephanie remained standing, feeling frustrated. "Take a chair." Ranger motioned and they both obeyed.

"What's this about?" Stephanie was still glaring at Ranger and shaking her head. She glanced over at Bobby.

"Brown, bring up the photo of Pinkie from last night." Ranger flipped his computer around and Bobby got to work. He went into a database and clicked around a lot then entered a strand of number and letters, then he was directed to another screen with a vibrant purple background where he entered more numbers. The screen popped up radioactive green and he entered more numbers and letters and finally what looked like a film library filled the screen. Bobby clicked and typed and a photo appeared on the screen and he leaned back in the chair.

"I…I don't understand." Stephanie looked at the photo, her mouth gaping open. "You didn't need me to verify anything, this picture is as clear as day! If you had showed me this, I could have told you immediately that this is Pinkie. Ranger?"

"We were running RangeMan cameras the same time we were looking at other security cameras. This is a building further down from the actual RangeMan building involved. We found it after Brown strung the recordings together and identified Pinkie. This is still our camera."

"I'm still not following." Stephanie shook her ponytail and slumped back in the chair.

"This photo came from a RangeMan office building. Follow?" Ranger stopped and waited for Stephanie's affirmative. "This is Pinkie, as you see from the camera. Yes?" Stephanie nodded again. "Completely legal." Ranger threw his hands out like it all made sense.

"Then why did you give the cops such a shitty picture? That's what I don't get." Stephanie was now standing. "And what happens if the cops get the original? Why didn't you show me this before?"

"Brown, you can leave now." Bobby stood and nodded, silently shutting the door behind him. "Babe, this all goes back to Miami."

"Oh god! Not again!"

Ranger walked over to Stephanie and sat her down, taking the seat next to her. "I agreed to assist the police in this matter but only at my terms. I'm on Miami's shit list and they seem to be migrating up to Trenton. That stunt that was pulled at our remodel job made a lot of people unhappy, especially when they saw us walk-off scot-free. Many people wanted to see RangeMan, and myself, hung out to dry. Like I told you before, there are several people out there convinced we're dirty. As far as TPD, I'm not going to give 100%. I gave them the information they needed to identify Pinkie, with your help. We are eliminating the middleman. Period. I'm not out to let RangeMan be their bitch.

"No one will ever get the original copy because RangeMan is a self-contained video circuit. I can't even hack into it in from an outside system as it is a RangeMan specifically designed program. Brown altered the picture to look shitty because I don't want the police expecting us to be another set of detectives. If the picture is ran through a spectrum processor it will not look any different or look like anything has been added. The only reason I gave the cops the picture is because they were going to need something more than your word. It's all for you, Babe. You were the one who identified Pinkie."

"Ranger, I'm…I don't know what to say. I mean, that's the nicest…"

"Listen," Ranger clasped his hands around hers, "the only reason RangeMan is involved is to protect you, Steph. I wouldn't risk the safety of my men or anyone's reputation, especially with Paige involved if I knew it wasn't going to accomplish anything. You need to promise me that you'll be careful. This whole case is only going to escalate to greater fucked up proportions. Take what assistance is offered. Agreed?"

Stephanie took a deep breath and squinted her blue eyes tightly closed. "Agreed."

"Good. You'll stay in the RangeMan apartment that is vacant."

"But what about my apartment?" Stephanie leaned against the desk, chin in hand.

"It's going to be to difficult to maintain security and break ins. Yes?"

"I suppose."

"Unless you want to stay with Morelli." Ranger added this trying to make it seem like she had options. "The police agreed to keep an eye on you too."

"Um, his cases right now haven't allowed him to be home too much in the evenings, so it would, um, probably be best to stay here." Stephanie really just wanted to be at her apartment, but at least she would have food and good company and RangeMan.

"We'll make arrangements to acquire items from your apartment." Ranger stood and opened the door, seeming too business like. "You can run searches and work for RangeMan."

Stephanie stood and walked through the open door to the hall, then turned around, "Well, I suppose. And what about this so called protection?"

"You'll take one of my men with you whenever you leave the building."

"But…Every time?" Ranger nodded. "Well, uh, I need to stop by the bonds office later today, so I'll pick up Lula. I won't need anyone." Ranger gave her the look of 'why are you arguing this' but Stephanie didn't back down. "Come on, Ranger! All Lula has to do is bend over and no one will come within fourteen feet of me!" She pled with her bright eyes. "Ranger, I will work here, but I'm still going to do my job with Vinnie. I'll always take someone out with me. And I'll do less skips since I'll be working here too. Just because you're going to make sure I'm safe doesn't mean I'm going to stay cooped up."

Ranger did a curt nod. "Fine."

Stephanie paused looking at Ranger. His eyes tried to reveal something, but his blank face prohibited anything from showing. _'Damn, why didn't he offer his apartment? Now, now, Stephanie. You're still with Joe. Yes, but so's that X-bitch too.' _"I'm sure the apartment will be fine."

"Ram will follow you to the bonds office and then he will leave when you pick up Lula." Ranger went back to his office, leaving Stephanie standing in the hall. She decided to take a tuna salad sandwich from the break room back to her desk and run searches till later in the afternoon.

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"Wasn't that the most informative conversation?" Paige commented as Joe walked back to join her and Slater.

"No shit. I'm sure the Chief has something on this guy. They just can't waltz in here and take this investigation away." The hallway had mostly cleared out by now with just a few paper pushers walking around.

"Joe, I don't think they're taking anything away. I think Manoso's making a point." Paige exchanged looks with Slater. "He has to have another motive for agreeing to associate with this case."

Joe looked at his watch and made a primitive grunting sound. "Let's eat and then see what we can muster up."

Two hours later the three of them sat down in the homicide chairs staring at photos of last night's incident. "What a bunch of…ugh." Joe threw his folder down and stood. "I'm going upstairs. I've had enough of this shit." Leaving Slater and Paige, Joe stalked up the stairs to Larson's door and walked in announced.

"I figured it was only a matter of time before you came through my door, Detective. I'm surprised you weren't here sooner." Larson gave him a steely stare. "Why do you feel entitled to the information I have?"

"Because it's my case."

"Morelli," Larson stood and slid his top drawer open with his right hand. He retrieved a file and pushed the drawer closed, the ball bearings scraping as it sealed with a soft thud. "You watch your attitude. I am still in charge and can alter your caseload as I see necessary. Do you understand?"

Joe nodded, eyeing the file greedily. "About RangeMan sir?"

"There's nothing to say. They are merely going to be an information asset for us. We have also agreed to assist with any protection measures for Ms. Plum. To better monitor her safety during this case, Mr. Manoso has offered the services of his company to provide her with security as well as a job at RangeMan. Seems pretty fair to me. Their information for our occasional protection?" Joe felt anger brewing under the surface of his skin. Larson ignored his glare and handed Joe the folder. Joe grabbed it but Larson didn't release it. "I mean it, Joe. Don't fuck this up." He released the file and dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

Like a child in a candy store he quickly flipped opened the faded yellow manila folder just outside Larson's door. The police-booking photo of Pinkie on top of a few leaflets of paper greeted him. His dark hair was straight and slightly greasy looking, his bangs had that sweaty plastered look to them, his skin a light tan color. He moved the paperclip securing the folder contents and looked at the booking photo date, crinkling his brow. He quickly found the jail report and nearly dropped the file. Turning on his heels and tripping himself, he stumbled into Larson's office gaining his balance on a folding chair.

"What! He made bail?" Joe held the file rigid in his hand.

"It was a minor theft charge four weeks ago." Chief Larson was prepared for Joe's reaction.

"Chief! Minor nothing, he is a murder suspect."

"Use your damned head, Morelli. That was way after he made bail. Look at his file. Read the report. He was a first time offender. We had no reason to hold him."

Joe glanced over the report, "There had to be something linking him to anything more than petty theft and…" Joe felt his face flush and gave the Chief a virulent glare, "Vincent Plum Bail Bonds?" Joe now understood the arrangement between the police, RangeMan, and Stephanie.

"I think it would be best if you show this case to your partner and see what you can discover. Anything you can't find, RangeMan has agreed to assist."

"Yeah. Sure, understood." Joe pushed aside with every ounce of his being the urge to break something. He took calming breaths as he made his way downstairs.

"What did you find out?" Paige murmured over her shoulder. She didn't get a response. Looking up at Slater, he licked his lips and pursed them as he nodded at Joe. "My god! What did you…is that the file?" Paige jumped up and grabbed the file out of Joe's hand. He took the vacated seat and assumed the position of staring at the chipped ceiling tiles, placing his feet on the desk. "Whoa. Well, at least we know how they got the information about, uhh, Pinkie here."

"Something like that." Joe mumbled.

"Vincent Plum Bail Bonds?" Paige gave Joe and incredulous look. This got a slight chuckle out of Slater.

"Yeeup. And I bet you anything she identified Pinkie. Shit! Not only do we have to deal with Manoso and his thugs, but he's put her at a desk at his company too! He always seems to fish and meddle, shit." Joe finished his rant without making sense and slammed his feet to the ground, eyes not leaving the ceiling shaking his head angrily.

"Hey, Joe. This could work out for the best." Slater piped in, sitting up. Joe snapped his head down and stared incredulously at Slater. Paige settled the folder in her lap and gave Slater the same look. "What guys? What's with the looks?"

"How the hell does this work for the best?" Joe felt as if his eyes were melting.

"Go on." Paige encouraged.

"Well, Joe, you seem to have a…how do you say? Strong dislike, perhaps, for Mr. Manoso?" Joe nodded and Slater continued in thoughtful breaks. "Join the club. He nearly cost me my job after that building bust. Your girlfriend is going to be working in close vicinity with Manoso."

"Closer than I would like." Joe spat out.

"How persuasive are you?" Slater leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees.

Joe now lifted an eyebrow and eyed Slater suspiciously. He turned to Paige and her eyes were bright dancing emeralds, an evil grin spreading across her face. "What are you getting at?"

"All the information we'll ever need is inside RangeMan. What would it take to…persuade her?"

"Persuade her?" Joe was quite attentive now.

"What would it take to convince your girlfriend to be an inside man, or rather, woman, for us at RangeMan?"

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****What do you all think? I'm encouraged by the reviews and PM's! Thank you so much for taking the time everyone!****


	21. Chapter 21

*****Thank you all for your kind words and...encouragement over the last chapter! Sorry for the delay, it's been tough finding time to sit down and write, however, this one is longer! Oh, and just to make sure, I don't own any of the wonderful characters you are so familiar with. Sad.*****

Previously...

_"All the information we'll ever need is inside RangeMan. What would it take to…persuade her?"_

_"Persuade her?" Joe was quite attentive now._

_"What would it take to convince your girlfriend to be an inside man, or rather, woman, for us at RangeMan?"_

* * *

"Persuade her?" Joe was quite attentive now.

"What would it take to convince your girlfriend to be an inside man, or rather, woman, for us?"

"Are you shitting me?" Joe nearly fell out of his chair.

Slater ran a hand through his dark hair and shook his head. "Well?"

"Maybe when Hell freezes over! She's too loyal to Manoso." The three of them exchanged glances and all leaned back, assessing. "There has to be some other, or rather, more feasible plan to get information out of RangeMan." Joe knew he was talking out of his ass.

"Joe, you've associated with Manoso longer than either one of us." Paige leaned forward her green eyes glistening. "I am at my end here. I'm not going to sit here and watch the arms mess unfold while Manoso stands by. I watched him walk away too many times down in Miami, and now we have a golden opportunity."

"Golden opportunity?" Slater gave Paige a quizzical glance.

"Unlike when I was, well, when I was using Carlos' brother to bypass information around the boss, this time he has consented to working with the police. I'm sure he put stipulations down, but this is as open a door as there is at getting into RangeMan!"

Joe rubbed his stubbled face and took a deep breath. "I'll admit, if we can pull this off, it would be something. Problem is, Steph's still pissed off about you staying at my house. Further, I don't know how I can approach her about this without tipping her off."

"Well, let me step in here." Paige scooted her chair closer to Joe and leaned in, her cat eyes more mischievous than ever, "This is what you'll do." Slater leaned in close as well not wanting to miss anything. "Now, first…"

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Tired of staring at the computer screen, Stephanie realized she hadn't even been running searches for an hour. "Screw it." She stood up and stretched then leaned down and picked up her purse. Quickly, she walked to the elevator and pressed 'down.' Hastily tapping her foot she punched the button again. Scowling at the elevator doors she scrunched her lips and turned around to face Ranger. "Well?"

"Ram will be here in a minute. He was finishing a file for me." Ranger eyed her up and down. "Babe, my men can protect you only as much as you let them. Be careful."

Stephanie sighed and folded her arms. She saw Ram's head bouncing around as he walked over to the elevator. "Stephanie." He nodded sheepishly.

Stephanie flapped her hand up to say 'hi' then turned back to the elevator. "Make sure she leaves with Lula." Stephanie and Ram stepped into the elevator. As the doors closed, Ranger's hand halted the door and he locked eyes with Stephanie. "This is serious, Babe. Try to listen this time, please." Stephanie's face seemed almost childlike as she broke the gaze and stared at her feet, nodding. Ranger gave a slight nod to Ram and released the door.

"Damn, Steph! I've never heard the Boss use please, you must really be in some serious…I mean, you must have really pissed him off." Ram rubbed large bulbous bald head.

"Well, I have that tendency don't I?" Stephanie shouldered her purse and walked to the X6 pulling out her key to beep it open. "Off to the bonds office." Stephanie forgot that she was being followed until she would look in her rearview mirror and register the black Suburban. She sighed and made the turn down Hamilton, stopping at the familiar storefront. Connie was plucking her mustache when Steph walked in and Connie smacked her gum, putting her mirror down.

"So what's new?"

Stephanie slumped down on to the broken down couch. "I've got a babysitter."

Connie looked out the window and waved at Ram. "Not too bad. So?"

"This been a crappy week! Turns out it was Pinkie that was responsible for Eddie's death."

Connie gasped and put a hand over her long line of cleavage that started at her neck. "No! Really?"

"Yeup. The police haven't released anything yet because they are still verifying." Stephanie heard a toilet flush and watched Lula walk out, adjusting a neon purple snake print mini skirt, her breasts nearly bursting out of a matching tube top. "You realize it is almost October?"

"So? Can't a woman be fashionable regardless of the weather? Hmmph. Look at you, Miss…Miss. Frumpy Pants!" Stephanie looked down at her crumpled black outfit from yesterday and the Boston crème stain on her stomach. She licked her finger and tried to scrape the dried goodness off. "Where's Officer Hottie? Haven't seen him in awhile. Oh! You wearin' black, you back with Batman?"

Stephanie shook her head and gave up on the stain. "No. Joe and I are still together. It's just that, well, he's got _her_ staying at his house ever since that dead body wound up in her bed. So I'm at RangeMan for the time being."

"What! X-bitch is at your house?" Lula had her hands sunken into her hips, her five inch gold Via Spigas tapping furiously. "What about all this activity that's been goin' down? You responsible?"

Stephanie shook her head. "No, but apparently I need protection and a sitter wherever I go. So, you want to accompany me today? It's you or Ram, and I can tell you who's company I prefer."

"Really white girl? That's so nice! So, first, fill me in!" Lula pushed all her fat around her breasts and sat down on the sofa next to Stephanie. Stephanie scrunched her head and figured out where to begin, choosing to start with Pinkie. She carried on about Paige moving in, the accident, the photos, Slater, the police meeting, and now being here with Ram watching outside.

"Whoa. That's quite a trip." Connie scratched her cheek and settled into her chair. "Ranger's right though, Steph. This smells rottener than the mob. You want some files?" Stephanie nodded and Connie handed her two skips.

"Anything exciting?" Stephanie deftly thumbed through the files occasionally lifting her lip or shrugging. "Not bad. Garvin Tucker seems decent, a uh…property damage. This Olvin guy looks good too. Stealing from a computer store? Why can't they ever go big?"

"Vinnie don't like his men big." Lula commented as she stood up. Connie and Stephanie cringed. "We takin' your car? Cuz, I am dressed for style today!" They waved good-bye to Connie and Stephanie waved off Ram. Ram actually didn't tail off until they were almost to the location of Garvin's address on the other side of the river. Stephanie walked up and noticed the door had recently been burned. She walked around the back of the house and shook her head at Lula and shrugged. "Well, looks like it's off to Ollie's house, girl."

Stephanie crossed back over the river to Olvin's on the north end of Stark Street. Lula purred to match the engine. "Damn! I love this car. I should get one, but maybe with some sort of zebra print or something on the dash. Oh, here's the house. Yikes! Guess you don't expect too much from Vinnie's FTA's. This house is, well, looks like something I used to frequent. You got a plan?"

Stephanie eyed the house then Lula and then the house. Lula's words registered and Stephanie grinned as she eyed Lula and her outfit again. "Oh yeah, I got an idea." Her voice gave away her thoughts and the grin spread like a Cheshire cat.

"Oh _heeelll_ no!" Lula crossed her arms across her chest and shook her matching purple cornrows. "Nuuh."

"Come on Lula! You even said yourself…"

"I know what I said, and I ain't doing it."

Stephanie bit her lip and thought for a minute. "Alright, I'll take you to dinner after we're done." Lula eyed her and seemed to contemplate the offer.

"Enticing, but you gotta do better than that." She leaned against the window and gave Stephanie the, 'Try again bitch, but I'm easy and warming up to you,' look.

"And I'll let you drive…To wherever you want to eat." Stephanie added as she fumbled through her purse retrieving her handcuffs.

"You got yourself a deal. I'll go in and get him to come out the front, so you wait in those bushes by the door after we go inside." Lula opened the passenger door and adjusted both her skirt and her top. She turned around to check herself in the reflection of the tinted window and Stephanie nearly choked on her own spit. Lula's boobs were pushed so far up her chin was resting on the top part.

"Good god! Help us all." Stephanie murmured as she placed the cuffs on the dash and watched Lula waddle up the sidewalk. Lula rang the bell and pulled her shoulders back, waiting. The door opened and a man who looked a lot like the picture in the folder answered the door. His eyes nearly popped right out of his head and he gave a slight squeal of glee at the sight of Lula on his doorstep. Stephanie shook her head and shuddered. Lula waved her arms dramatically then was leaning against the doorframe persuading Olvin to let her inside, rubbing her finger down his chest and making sure to bend over a lot. From the car, Stephanie could see sweat forming on his brow as he nervously looked around. Stephanie got a strange feeling and cautiously watched Lula interact with Olvin.

Lula continued to sweet talk him and pulled open her purse. Suddenly, she dropped it at Olvin's feet. Feigning clumsiness Lula prepared to bend over. Thankfully, Olvin held his hand up and quickly bent down to pick up the silver handbag for her. Lula stuck her chest out and as he came back up he smashed into her gigantic breasts. Stephanie swore she felt a tremor as the massive breasts bounced up into Lula's chin, nearly giving her whiplash, then bounced back onto Olvin's head catching him off balance. Lula stumbled back by both the breast knockout and Olvin's teetering. Suddenly, her ankle rolled off of her sky riser shoes and her arms flayed like a chicken on its way to Cluck-in-a-Bucket. Olvin grabbed for Lula grasping the only thing available and took hold of both breasts as she tumbled backward. Her top slipped down and Lula in all her glory was splayed on the damp grass with both breasts exposed and Olvin's head nuzzled between them, his feet kicking.

Jumping into action, Stephanie grabbed her cuffs from the dash and sprang from the vehicle to rescue Olvin. Lula looked like a turtle on its back kicking her feet wildly and Olvin was barely moving now. "My god, Lula! You're going to suffocate him!"

"What! You worried about him when he's the one violatin' me! Get him off!" Lula was furiously wriggling back and forth. Stephanie clasped the cuffs on Olvin's wrists and rolled him off Lula onto his back. With great effort, Lula stood up and adjusted herself, stuffing her breasts back into the slinky top. "Phew! Pervert! I see now why Vinnie bailed you out." Olvin was passed out and had a shit-eating grin plastered on his face as they dragged him to the car. "Let's get him down to the station. I need some serious comfort food after this dangerous ordeal. I nearly died!"

Stephanie smiled as she started the car and drove towards the police station. "Don't you think you're being a little dramatic? You didn't nearly die!" Olvin started to make noises in the back seat, so Lula turned around and tazed him.

"Did too! I was nearly drug into the house and murdered!" Stephanie shook her head at her friend and finally pulled into the police station amidst the rants of death from Lula.

"You want to come in?"

"Now what kind of question is that? I'm going to be waiting in the driver's seat of this beaut." Lula caressed the dashboard and shooed Stephanie out of the car. Stephanie opened the back and pulled Olvin out, shutting the door behind her.

"Oomph. He's kind of heavy Lula, do you think…" Stephanie turned around as she heard the tires squeal and Lula sped through the parking lot. "Geez. Let's go Olvin." Stephanie dragged the limp body to the door and was met by Mickey and Eddie. "Hey, a little help?" Eddie gave her a grin and together, with Olvin's feet dragging on the ground, Mickey and Eddie easily pulled Olvin into the station. Stephanie sat on a bench waiting for them to return with the necessary documents and recognized three familiar figures walking down the hall. They all nodded to Eddie and Mickey and Slater stepped to the side as Olvin was dragged by. Paige and Joe nodded to Slater and turned the corner continuing their conversation.

"Your handiwork?" Slater slid on the bench next to Stephanie and motioned down the hall after Olvin.

"Oh, um. Sort of. I had a little help today." Stephanie finally had the opportunity to actually "check out" Slater. She was convinced that he still looked like a light colored version of Antonia Banderas. His hair reminded her of Ranger's when it is longer except not as silky and it was jet black. She still couldn't place his accent and his eyes were beady black. "I recognize you from my apartment this morning. You ate one of my donuts."

Slater threw his head back and laughed. "Ha! Guilty! But you said it was okay."

Stephanie smiled at this and extended her hand, "I suppose I did, but that's quite unusual for me. Stephanie Plum."

"Ah, I see, a formal introduction." He took her hand and warmly shook it. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"So, you're ATF, right?" Slater nodded. "From Mar…uh, DC, right?" He nodded again. "What are you doing in Trenton?"

Slater grinned and leaned back. "Working on the case. What else is there to say?"

"I see. And you know Paige?" Stephanie raised her eyebrows and observed him.

"Guilty again. I, uh, worked with her on this case from its inception."

"You mean, in Miami?"

"Yes." He lingered on the 's' and Stephanie smiled.

"Slater, where are you from? I mean, you know, your accent."

"I actually am from Maryland. I was taught Spanish by the government to assist with South American relations over eight years ago. I deal with Spanish more than English, so I suppose my accent it quite prominent."

Stephanie was going to say something further when Eddie called her name. "Well, it was nice to meet you Slater." She turned to Eddie.

"Got your receipt, Steph." Eddie waved the paper in the air. She grabbed it and said good-bye walking out to meet Lula. Stephanie stood in the parking lot and couldn't see the BMW anywhere.

"What the?" Pulling out her phone, Stephanie dialed Lula.

"Yeah?"

"Lula, where are you?" Stephanie could hear people in the background laughing.

"Oh! Hey, girl! I'm at this great Mexican place! Boy, it's fabulous."

"Umm, Lula. You were suppose to wait for me and we were going to go together." Stephanie looked around the lot and walked back to the police station door and stepped inside.

"Oh, I was! But my near death experience put me in a bind I had the runs so bad I thought I was done gonna shit myself! So I drove as fast as I could to find a place to take a crap." Lula finished her rant and Stephanie's phone beeped. She looked at the number and cringed, knowing she was in trouble.

"Just drop the car off at RangeMan okay? Have Tank come and get it or something. I gotta go."

"Yeah, me too! Talk to you later!"

Stephanie let the phone beep again and she released a heavy sigh, pressing the 'send' button.

"Babe, you want to tell me why your car is at a Mexican restaurant on the other side of town and you're standing at the police station?" Ranger sounded unusually calm.

"I just brought my skip in."

"And the car?"

"Well, Lula decided she needed to go to the bathroom." Stephanie swore she heard him shake his head. "Um, I'm at the station so, I guess I can just…oh wait." Stephanie looked up and saw Joe walking towards her. "I, uh, I'll call you back and let you know what's going to happen, maybe I can catch a ride with Joe or something." Ranger bit down hard on the inside of his lip. "I am at a police station, so not a lot can happen. I'll call you later." Stephanie hung up and Joe came up to her and wrapped her in a strong embrace.

"Hey, Cupcake! I feel like I haven't seen you forever." He bent his head down and gave her a kiss on her surprised lips. A slight "oh" escaped Stephanie's lips as they parted for breath.

"Joe, are, uh, I…are you off work?"

"I was thinking we could go to dinner tonight. What do you think? That is, if you're free." Joe held her shoulders and looked into her blue eyes.

"Of course I'm free! Where would you like to go?" Stephanie slipped her phone in her purse and Joe took her hand.

"How about we go to Pino's. I'm in the mood for some cheesy pizza." Stephanie smiled at this and followed him to his car. They hopped into the Explorer and Joe drove to their favorite place. They got a table in the back corner and ordered an extra-large pizza. Their waiter dropped off two beers and took the menu. "I can't believe that you identified the shooter as Pinkie, Cupcake. I'm so proud of you."

Stephanie choked on her beer and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She blinked rapidly at Joe and swallowed. "What?"

"Your job finally did something good. You, Steph, did good." Joe picked up her hand and stroked it.

"I, uh, thanks."

"I don't know how we would have identified him otherwise." Joe continued to mindlessly rub her hand.

"Well, Ranger did have a picture to…or rather, the photo that…uh." Stephanie couldn't concentrate and get her words out while Joe was rubbing her hand.

"What?" Joe asked, his eyes darkening.

"It wasn't all me. I mean, RangeMan was able to provide the picture to run through your facial recognition program." Stephanie felt her head slightly clear.

"I would have believed you, even if you didn't have a picture. I'm sorry I haven't been around a lot. It's been pretty tense at the office. We have had so much paperwork and…" Joe looked away and his eyes misted, "and with Big Dog's death," Joe shook his head. Stephanie scooted her chair closer to him and wrapped an arm around him.

"Oh, Joe! I know it's so terrible. I wish I could do more." Stephanie felt herself getting emotional.

"Hey." He cupped her face and gave her a kiss. "You have opened the door to helping us capture this bastard, Cupcake. You have helped out tremendously. And you even put your life in danger. The Chief told me about the department agreeing to provide you with safety if RangeMan was unavailable. That was very noble of you."

Stephanie felt her head spin. _'What the hell? Joe? My Joe?'_

"Where are Manoso's men?" Joe asked his eyes scanning the restaurant. _'Men? Not thugs?'_

"Well, I was with Lula, but she sort of went to dinner."

"I'm glad I'm here then." Joe smiled at her. "Are you still working for Vinnie then?"

"Yes, and no. I'm doing just a few skips, but until this whole Pinkie thing resolves I'll be working at RangeMan most of the time. Running searches and information, things like that." Stephanie's eyes lit up as the pizza arrived. She greedily grabbed a piece to lessen the sick feeling growing in her stomach.

"You going to be helping on this case?"

"Oh, I dumo." Stephanie said through a mouth of olives, peppers, sausage.

"You know, Steph, we're so shorthanded right now, and this case is so huge, you could really be a huge help in assisting with our information searches." Joe took a swig of beer and grabbed another piece.

Stephanie barely stopped chewing as she took in what Joe said. Her mind was racing and she drowned her pizza with some beer. "I can?"

"Absolutely. I might even get to see you more often." Joe leaned forward and brushed a stray hair off her face. "It would be so convenient for you. That is, you wouldn't have to come down to the station since you are working at RangeMan." Joe looked at the pizza and over half of it was gone already. Stephanie's phone chirped and she fished through her purse retrieving it.

"Hello? Yes. I am. Yes. Oh. I will." Stephanie closed the phone and looked back at Joe.

"We would be very appreciative of anything you can supply us with, Cupcake. We're so swamped."

"I would love to help you out, Joe. I mean, if it's that important and it can be, uh, resolved faster." Stephanie steadied her breathing.

"That's great, Cupcake! You are going to be such a help." Joe internally sighed and smiled widely at Stephanie, kissing her hand. "You ready to go home?"

"Uh, actually, there's already someone here to pick me up."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I'm staying at an apartment at RangeMan until everything clears out. You know, safety reasons." Stephanie brushed her hair off her face and leaned back. They stood up together and Joe walked her out. A black Cayenne was waiting at the curb.

"Alright. Steph," Joe turned her to face him, "be careful. You should wait on taking in skips until this all passes over."

"I'll be fine, Joe." Joe leaned in and kissed her. Stephanie waved and climbed into the passenger seat next to Ranger. After she secured her belt, she folded her arms and legs and stared out the window, turning her back on Ranger. Ranger's eyes never left her as he pulled away from the curb. He slipped into the zone and they silently arrived back at Haywood. They exited the vehicle and waited for the elevator. Stepping in, they arrived quickly to floor five. Ranger stepped off and Stephanie punched the four button, Ranger turned and watched the doors close, observing the sight before him. Lester grabbed his attention and they walked to a monitor at the center of the room.

Stephanie unlocked her apartment and sat on the couch that had been brought over from her apartment. Probably placed there by the Merry Men. She pulled her legs up to her chest and stared into the growing darkness.

"Stay on this alarm and send a team to check the outside motion sensors. I'm offline." Lester nodded and Ranger left.

The faintest sound of a click spread through the apartment. Several hours later, Stephanie still stared at nothing; though the nothing was now blanketed in moonlight. A figure moved silently into the room. He moved towards Stephanie who looked like a small child with her legs pulled to her chest. Kneeling down in line with her blank gaze, she stirred and met his eyes.

"Babe," Ranger whispered as he gently picked up her hands.

"Ranger, I...I..."

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****Thank you so much for reading again! So, Steph's gotta make up her mind with what she's going to do and say, if she should say anything. Stay tuned! Reviews and thoughts are much appreciated!****


	22. Chapter 22

*****This chapter is a little shorter than the others, but I kicked off Birthday week and knew I would never get this up until next week and didn't want tomatoes thrown! Plus, it seemed like a natural enough break. Thank you all for your feedback, I'm so grateful.**

**Remember, most of these puppies are JE characters, sadly not mine :( Enjoy!*****

* * *

The house was dark with the exception of a blue glow coming from the living room. Joe opened the door and was met by the sounds of late night news. Walking over to the sofa, he saw Paige sleeping with Bob. Bob's head was resting on the cushion with Paige's arm wrapped around his unruly furry body. A blanket was partially draped across her waist, exposing her legs and torso. Joe flicked on the light and turned the television off. Bob stirred and wagged his tail, beating the coffee table at a steady rhythm. Joe walked over to the sofa bending down to adjust the blanket on Paige's lap. Paige rolled onto her back and stretched her arms sleepily over her head. In turn, the blanket slipped off revealing her long milky white legs and boyshort panties. She groaned and felt her eyes groggily tug open.

"Holy shit, Walker!" Joe stumbled backwards tripping over Bob as he found himself face to face with the barrel of Paige's gun. She clicked the safety back on and grabbed his arm before he could fall on the coffee table. Regaining his balance, Joe reached down and picked up the blanket that had fallen to the floor and walked to the opposite end of the sofa.

"I'm sorry! Make some noise next time! Shit. You startled me, Joe." Paige placed her gun on the table and Joe sat at the far end of the sofa. "Wow, is it really pass eleven? I must have fallen asleep."

'_Damn, that's sexy. She's even wearing a TPD T-shirt. Wait. Is that mine?'_ Joe took in Paige's appearance and smirked. Paige was fully up now and shrugged as Joe handed her the blanket. Paige placed the blanket across her lap and curled into the corner of the sofa. In a counteractive gesture, she then stretched her arms and legs wide, yawning. Joe smiled at her action. "Rough day?"

"Hardly, Detective. I can't believe it. The last thing I remember is watching a _Simpson's_ rerun. That must have been," She stared at her watch and shrugged, "hours ago. What about you?" Paige eyed him and her eyes got wide. "What happened? Did you do it?"

"Yeah, I did it. I don't know Paige. I don't think it's going to work."

"Joe, you even said yourself you hid her ex-husband here, right under her nose. What's the worst that will happen, huh? She doesn't cooperate and doesn't give us the information? It's not like we are going to pump her for services so to speak."

Joe shrugged. "I suppose you're right. And it's not like I'm going to hound her and pester her for intel either."

"Hey," Paige leaned forward and took his hand, "you told her that it would be helpful, you didn't force her or make her consent. She probably agreed to assist, right?" Joe nodded.

"But she doesn't like you."

"No one likes me! Joe, that's the least of our worries. If she grows a backbone and chooses not to help us, we'll just wait for the information RangeMan sends to Larson and the department. We don't _need_ RangeMan per se, but their info may progress the case faster. So, she agreed to assist, right?"

"Yeah, she did. She seemed excited about it too. The thing is I think we're doing the right thing. And if we can pull something on Manoso, we'll have the mother of all loads."

"Just remember, Joe. I did what I had to when I was in Miami. I slept with the enemy for chirstsake!"

"This seems different though, Walker." The knot in his stomach lessened. The agenda he and Paige had going made everything feel warranted. '_You've got to give yourself credit. All the shit you've put up with the past several years. Ranger, and Ranger's poaching, and Ranger's men, and Ranger, Ranger, Ranger_! _Hell with it, they can have their fucked up scenarios.'_ He wanted desperately to hang whoever killed Big Dog and for some reason, more than ever, he felt driven to bring justice forth for Paige's partner too.

"Why's that?" Paige gave him a skeptical look. Absentmindedly, his hand was stroking Paige's foot but he didn't answer. She wiggled her toes and pulled him from his trance. "You seem awfully far away there."

Joe squeezed her foot and nodded, "I just…" He took a few loud breaths then sighed. "I see what you did for your case and what you are doing now for your partner's sake and…and since I have been partnered with you, I have had the strangest feelings of drive to be there and protect you. I have some weird 'partner' mentality I've never had or experienced before and we've already been there for each other on so much more than the professional level."

"I understand." Paige smiled and grabbed his hand. "Joe…I don't want to let you down. I understand how hard this situation may be for you right now, especially with your girlfriend in limbo. But understand that I'm not going to force anything upon you. I'm not going to make you do anything, it should be consensual. If you are ever uncomfortable or don't want to do something, you need to let me know. It's not going to hurt my feelings. I'm a big girl."

"That's where the problem sets in. I am uncomfortable"

"Oh?"

"I'm so damned attracted to you."

"And Stephanie?"

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Ranger stayed kneeling in front of Stephanie, not prying, just silent, encouraging her to continue on her own.

"Ranger, I…I…" Stephanie felt the tears burning her eyes and a tightness in her chest. She pulled her hands away from Ranger and pulled her knees tighter to her chest. "I think I consented to being used."

Ranger put his blank face on and grabbed her elbows. "Babe, by being here you…"

"No, it's…it's not like that. It's, I, Joe." She said it so faintly, Ranger didn't hear and cocked his head to the right. "Joe. It's Joe, Ranger." She repeated flatly.

"What do you mean, Steph? What happened?" Ranger pulled himself onto the sofa next to her and turned her to face him.

"I went to dinner with Joe and it was going really great. Then he said that he was swamped and could really use my help with information searches and…" Stephanie trailed off. "And then he started using the word 'we.' WE! Ranger I," She started breathing very heavy and her voice started raising in pitch, "all I could think about was what the devil bitch did to you down in Miami. I'll be damned if I'm going to do that to you Ranger! I can't! And I won't! Damn him! And damn her! They're trying to use Stephanie Plum! Well…well…well fuck them!"

By now Stephanie was off the sofa and throwing her arms in the air going off on her tirade. Ranger sat back clearly bemused with her actions. Internally he was smirking to himself. '_Dios, my Babe. Stronger than any woman I have ever met. And when you're angry? Pure wrath.'_ Ranger stood and with a quick soothing gesture rolled into one, he wrapped her in his arms and set her back on the sofa so she was facing him again. Careful not to touch her or initiate any action to fire her off, he leaned over and snapped on the table lamp. An ocean tempest was staring back at him. "Babe,"

"No, Ranger. How dare he? I'm not going to be anyone's information whore but yours!"

This got a smile from Ranger, "Really, Babe? You'd be my whore?"

"Well," Stephanie felt her face flush and looked at the cushion, "figuratively speaking. But that's because I do information searches, you know, I uh, well, you know, work and…" Ranger silenced her with a knowing nod of his head and a pat on her arm. Stephanie took a deep calming breath and felt her nerves stop firing. "God, I really thought that he wanted me to help, Ranger. I thought I could be useful."

"Stop. You are useful. Don't ever think that you aren't and don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise. Okay?" Ranger gave her a stern look and she nodded her head. They sat in silence for several minutes. Stephanie's energy had finally fizzled down and she sat, contemplating. "Do you smell that?" Stephanie looked up and sniffed the air, shaking her head. "Something's burning, Babe. What are thinking?"

Stephanie reached across and punched him in the leg. "It's time, Ranger." Ranger stared at her blank, only because he really was confused. "It's time to get the three caballeros off your ass."

"The three caballeros, Babe?"

"Yeah, you know, Paige, Slater, and Joe?"

"Uhh, cabllero is a Spanish gentleman."

"Oh, okay, the three stooges." Ranger shrugged at this and let her continue. "Anyway, if that bitch thinks she can use me to her advantage to cross you, she has another thing coming." Stephanie laced her fingers together and nervously turned her hands upside down. "What if we work this to our advantage?"

"I'm not sure I like where you are going with this."

"Hear me out Ranger. It's not like we are going to do anything illegal. That would be wrong. Kind of like that picture you gave them, you know, feed them information to think that they are getting more than they deserve."

"I'm not feeding bogus information."

"It wouldn't be bogus, Ranger! It would just be, you know, the right stuff, just not all the stuff."

Ranger leaned back and seriously assessed what Stephanie was saying. "Babe, this is what got me, us, RangeMan in trouble in the first place."

"No. This is different." Stephanie was adamant. "That information was going out without your approval. Who knows what they were actually receiving or even where they were receiving it from?" Stephanie paused and shook her head at Ranger, "Didn't you just get finished telling me earlier," Stephanie put on her best Bullwinkle voice, "_TPD has asked us to assist with the information investigation_._ I have the final say as to what information they get and I'm only giving them the information they request Nothing more._" Stephanie was now pacing again and throwing her arms around in Italian gestures to exaggerate her point.

Ranger lifted an eyebrow, "I did say something _similar_ to that, but certainly not _like_ that or in that tone of voice."

"Let me get this straight: You found out Paige was sleeping with your brother to obtain information." Ranger nodded, good I suppose. "Then, the info stopped and you guys were arrested at a redecorating job." Another nod, '_Progress'_ Stephanie thought. "You got off the hook and the police got busted. They thought that you were feeding them bad intel regarding your cousin to set yourself up to make the police look bad."

"Something like that." Ranger had his arms folded still unsure where Stephanie was headed.

"What the hell! Seriously, Ranger! Who sets ones self up to get arrested? And now they're trying to pin you again?"

"Babe, it goes deeper."

"Deeper?" Stephanie felt her eyes bulge. "As in how much deeper?" She laced each word with skepticism and perfect pronunciation. Ranger just held her stare. "Y…you didn't, uh, actually set yourself up. Did you?"

Ranger motioned for her to sit next to him. "After all of this went down, Miami police received information that was a huge break in their arms case. It ended up being a setup and it was a literal bureaucratic massacre. Paige's partner died during the shootout. In addition to all the other finger pointing, Paige blames RangeMan, or rather, me for her partner's death."

"Oh." Stephanie could think of nothing more intelligent to say. She thought and proceeded, "She's definitely a bitch on a mission." Ranger nodded. "And that's why this is so important! Ranger, I agreed to give Joe and 'we' information. The truth is going to come out eventually, why not help steer the direction we want?"

Ranger felt a twinge inside his brain wanting to follow his Babe's rationale. _'However, the Feds and police are awfully pissed off. This has Miami written all over it. I can't do to her what they did to me.'_

'_Oh, shit! I'm standing up to Batman!'_ Stephanie made up her mind and spoke with finality. "Ranger, I _am_ going to do this. You have to make the decision whether you want to help me or not."

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**Steph has a less maliable backbone and Ranger's got a decision to make. Thanks for the love! Hit the little button there, yeup, you see it, and share your thoughts!**


	23. Chapter 23

*****Thank you all for the reviews and incredibley helpful info and encouragement! I sure wish Ranger would stop by. :( Enjoy!*****

Previously...

_"Oh." Stephanie could think of nothing more intelligent to say. She thought and proceeded, "She's definitely a bitch on a mission." Ranger nodded. "And that's why this is so important! Ranger, I agreed to give Joe and 'we' information. The truth is going to come out eventually, why not help steer the direction we want?"_

_Ranger felt a twinge inside his brain wanting to follow his Babe's rationale. 'However, the Feds and police are awfully pissed off. This has Miami written all over it. I can't do to her what they did to me.'_

_'Oh, shit! I'm standing up to Batman!' Stephanie made up her mind and spoke with finality. "Ranger, I am going to do this. You have to make the decision whether you want to help me or not."_

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Ranger pondered Stephanie's decision. '_Are you kidding me, Steph? I'm not going to let you run out into the vipers on your own.'_ He continued to watch her, the more he observed and the longer he didn't speak she looked at any moment ready to pee her pants. "Babe, just how do you plan on doing this? You've gone from beat down peasant to vigilante over the course of this conversation. You do realize who you're trying to piss off?"

Stephanie bit her cheek and took in Ranger's words. "Well, I, uhh….hmm. So, are you in or what?"

"Tell me first your plan and answer my previous question."

"Well, I…I…"

"You don't have a plan do you?" Ranger nearly expected what she was going to say next.

"Well, I was hoping that you would consent and then you could help finalize the details." Stephanie spoke with slurred rapidity and her eyes were wide as she looked up at the ceiling and sucked on her bottom lip.

Ranger ran a hand across his face and scratched the nape of his neck. "Christ, Babe."

"I want to do this, Ranger! I'm ready to beat the three stooges at their own game. With RangeMan working occasionally on different aspects of this case and me working full-time on the same information, we should be able to uncover some stuff. Right?"

Ranger maintained his cool while second-guessing himself at ever consenting to helping TPD, '_Ahh, but Stephanie is in danger. That's the reason she is here.'_ Ranger stiffened and reached for Stephanie's hands. "Let's talk about this tomorrow. It's late, there's far too much going on, and you need to go to sleep. We can discuss what your role is going to be and how best to accomplish…well, whatever it is you want to do."

"The thing is…" Ranger held up his hand.

"Tomorrow. You and I will go pick Binkie up from the hospital. He's going to be discharged and we will discuss it then." He kissed her on the forehead and stood. "Good night." With that, a silent Stephanie watched Ranger leave her apartment. Slumping into the sofa, she sighed heavily and then yawned deeply.

"Always tomorrow." She stood up and walked to the kitchen to check on Rex. He seemed content enough in his soup can, so she padded off to her bed.

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Joe was still silent as he assessed what he wanted to say. '_What about Stephanie. What about Stephanie? Shit.'_ Joe just stared at Paige. Stephanie had agreed to help with information and here's Paige sitting on Joe's couch in her underwear and his T-shirt. Matters seem to become more complicated every day. "Stephanie is at RangeMan right now."

"That's not exactly what I meant, Joe. She is your girlfriend, no?" Paige cocked her head her red hair brushing across her chin.

"We haven't officially broken up." Joe decided this was a good answer.

"Uh huh. Yet she hasn't been around to see you, you haven't so much as inquired as to her well being through this whole thing, and now, you're using her."

"When you put it that way." Joe shifted uncomfortable on the cushion.

"It sure puts you out to being an ass."

"Well, part of that was at your discretion, or rather, direction."

"Hey," Paige threw her hands up in a defensive gesture, "don't throw the blame this way, you agreed, remember? You made the choice to follow through."

"I guess I did."

"And on top of all that, you're okay with her being at Manoso's?"

Joe locked onto her glowing emerald eyes sorting his, well, he would never admit to feelings, so, sorting through his thoughts. "For the first time in my life, I can unequivocally say yes. Yes, I am okay with the situation."

"So what are we going to do about you being uncomfortable?" Joe just stared at her his eyes darkening deeply. "I can go tomorrow and get a cheap motel for the next few nights and be out of your house. This will allow you to better focus on "things" and Stephanie can move back in. She already said she wouldn't be here as long as I was around." Paige was suddenly very aware of her breathing. The increased heart rate. The rise and fall of her chest. The sound of the air coming out of her nose. "It's your decision. Where do you want me to go, Joe?"

"Upstairs." Joe leaned forward and pulled her towards him. Their lips crushed together and his hand tangled into her hair. She felt the front of his jeans become taught and she let out a soft moan. Her boy shorts were practically soaked through as the kiss turned more aggressive. Pulling her off the couch and into his arms, in one move Joe lifted Paige and carried her across the room. "I want you to go upstairs." The floor squeaked as the two bodies sunk the bed with a heavy 'thud.' Paige stared into the dark chocolate pools and pulled his head down to hers.

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Joe's eyes slipped open as the room gained light. It was the gray light that comes from a dreary day and probably rain clouds. His arm was wrapped around a slender body and his fingers lifted up a patch of auburn-red hair. Brushing it across her porcelain face he felt a hand tighten on his stomach. He thought the whole thing a little ironic. For years he would have blue eyes staring back at him, but this morning, they were vibrant pools of green.

"Good morning, Joe." Paige stretched and turned over, noticing the time. "Geez, 6:30 already. The day has practically started without us."

"Paige?"

"Hmmm?" She sleepily answered.

"You are okay with this, right?" Joe ran his hand through her hair.

Paige chuckled, "Shouldn't you have asked that _last night, _you know, _before_ all this?" She looked up at him and smiled. "It's more than okay."

Joe felt a growl in his throat but suppressed it. "Hmmm. Well, I think we should probably get moving. We're meeting Slater this morning before he heads back to DC."

"Bah! I waited long enough for this," she ran her fingernail from his neck down to his bellybutton, "so Slater can wait for us."

"Really? You waited _that_ long?"

"Almost since I saw you at the police station."

"That soon?" Joe tilted his head, skepticism behind his words.

"Well, maybe when that robber threw the gun at you. That was cute."

"Christ, Paige! Well, we better hurry then." Joe rolled her over and kissed her neck. "We need to get to the station before eight."

"I suppose. But…shit." The phone on the nightstand was dancing as it vibrated on the hard surface screeching to be answered. Joe continued to kiss Paige's neck. "Go on, answer it."

Grumbling, Joe reached over, "Morelli. Of course I'm up. Uh huh. What? Again? No, she's here. Hour tops. Fine." Joe gave Paige a chagrined look. "We got another vic whose body is detached."

"Body detached?" Paige leaned up on her elbow and shook her head, rolling her eyes. "You mean…"

"Yeah, the head was found a short distance away."

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Stephanie felt anything but refreshed when a banging on her door woke her up. Begrudgingly, she stalked to the door and ripped it open. Ranger was standing there, hands behind his back. "Really?! Normally you break in or just let yourself into my apartment and gracefully wake me up, but at," she looked at a clock behind her, "holy, crap! 6:30! You pound on my door at 6:30? Someone better be dead, but even then, that's not a good enough excuse." Stephanie leaned against the door and folded her arms giving him the Plum death glare.

"Babe."

"Gotta do better than that, Ranger." Her lips were now puckered tight together.

"Seems your skip had a little accident this morning."

"Skip? Huh?" The tired fog trying to lift.

"Olvin Verra, sound familiar?"

Stephanie looked at him as though all his muscles had just deflated. "Uhhh…no? Oh! You mean Ollie? Yeah! Lula and I took him in yesterday. Uhh…" Stephanie thumped her head, "he, he…shit. He stole from a computer store!"

"That's the one. He was found dead this morning. Beheaded."

Stephanie looked perplexed. "And what does that mean for me?"

"I don't think it's just a coincidence that two of your skips have been found with their heads detached."

"I'm sorry, Ranger, but that's not good enough to get me up for another two hours. Besides, he wasn't even my skip anymore since I already got the receipt on him. If you'll excuse me, I don't believe you have me scheduled to work until nine today." Stephanie made to close the door but didn't get very far when a large boot halted the progress. Ranger brought his hands up to Stephanie, revealing a box and she gasped slightly. "You wouldn't? How dare you bribe me!" She grabbed the box of Boston crèmes and mumbled something about twenty minutes and closed the door.

Sinking into the sofa Stephanie moaned at the freshness and creamy texture of the donuts. Within six minutes half the box was gone and she was preparing for her day. The shower was luxurious compared to her ghetto retro one at the apartment and the towels were almost Ranger quality. Stephanie quickly dressed in a black v-neck RangeMan tee and black cargoes. Throwing her hair up into a high ponytail, she grabbed the box of donuts and made her way down to Ranger's office.

Ranger looked up as she knocked on the wall and motioned for her to come in, donuts and all. "You and I are going to stop by the crime scene. From there, we will pick up Binkie."

"But why do we need to go see the scene? I'm not really in the mood to see any dead people. Besides, I'm sure Joe will be there."

Ranger put his pencil down and looked up at her. Bringing up Joe, he knew it was on the tip of her tongue, so he figured he would disclose the information. "I'll do it."

"You mean?"

"I don't think it is going to be exactly what you had in mind, if anything, but we'll do the information spiel together. We'll give the three stooges the information they are seeking to make them think they are getting more than they deserve. It won't necessarily be bogus information but enough to give them a taste of their own medicine." Stephanie gave him blue doe eyes. "Nothing will implement RangeMan. Let's move out." Ranger snapped back into business mode and stood, motioning for Stephanie to follow. They arrived in the garage and Ranger stepped up to the Cayenne, Stephanie looked at her box. "You can finish them on the way over." Stephanie gave a broad smile and slid into the luxurious black seat.

The ride was quiet as they drove through Hamilton Township several miles north. The crime scene was not hard to miss. Several cop cars were parked on the street as well as the coroner vehicle and a lot of yellow crime tape. Ranger parekd his black Porsche at the corner and they both walked towards the guy who looked in charge. Captain Moore nodded to them and excused himself from the two officers he was talking to and nodded to Ranger.

"Mr. Manoso, nothing out of the ordinary." Moore stated nonchalantly, like a man missing his head was an every day occurrence like bananas being yellow. Stephanie turned to watch the coroner examine the body bag and write something on his clipboard. He then asked where the bag with the head was and Stephanie quickly averted her eyes to the large tree growing in front of a house.

"Any similarities with the victim found in Detective Walker's room?" Ranger surveyed the crime scene and noticed two detectives walking their way, Joe's hand on the small of Paige's back.

"Besides decapitation? No. Ahhh, Detectives, glad you could finally make it."

Stephanie felt her spine go rigid as Paige and Joe joined the circle. Ranger placed a hand on her shoulder and turned her towards the conversation. She smiled at Joe and nodded to Paige. "Where's Larry?" She burst out. They both gave her a confused look and she felt Ranger stifle a laugh. "Uh, I mean, umm, what's his name? Ah! Where's Slater?"

"He's with the coroner gathering the parts. He was in charge of finding the head." Paige pointed behind them and they all turned to see Slater waving to them, pointing to a bulbous garbage bag hanging in his outstretched hand. "Looks like he succeeded too!" The three officers laughed, but Stephanie didn't quite see the humor.

"So what's on the agenda today?" Stephanie turned to Joe.

"Just homicide. Working here and then going back to do paperwork. Pretty uneventful. You?"

"We're picking up Ranger's man at the hospital today, I'll probably check on Carl while I'm there. Any word on Big Dog's funeral yet?"

Joe shook his head and bit his lip. "They're saying Friday or Saturday. Listen, Steph. Just, be careful out there and stay safe, okay?"

"You know me, I'm queen safety."

Slater came and joined the conversation, wiping his hands on his pants. Ranger remained virtually silent as everyone mingled.

"Miss Plum, how are you?" Slater's accent coming out on the 'Miss.'

"Oh, please, call me Stephanie. I'm doing just fine."

"I see your friend here had quite a terrible fate."

"I did my job and apprehended him, obviously he posted bail again. Looks like someone got better of him though."

"Why don't we walk around and see if there is anything abnormal. We've got quite the set of eyes here." The Captain walked under the yellow tape and held it up for everyone to follow. Stephanie watched everyone go under the tape. Ranger paused and took the tape from Moore.

"Steph?"

"Uhh, no thanks, Ranger. I'm just fine on this side of the tape. I'll, uh, be in the car if that's okay." Stephanie felt her donuts churning in her stomach and needed the comfort of the last two in the Cayenne. Ranger nodded and jogged after the others. Stephanie returned to the car and pulled out her case file from her purse. She opened the folder and of the only FTA, the property damage guy Garvin Tucker. Stephanie leaned her seat back to get more comfortable to read his file again and fell into a deep sleep.

The sound of the car unlocking startled Stephanie awake. Ranger slipped into the car and gave her a grin. "Hey, Babe."

"Holy cow, Ranger you scared me!" Stephanie put her seat in the upright position and wiped the dried drool stain off her chin.

"Good reading material?" He pointed to her lap and she shrugged, tossing the file on the floor.

"Not really." Stephanie stretched and looked around furrowing her brow. "What time is it?"

"Eleven."

"What! Wow, I was asleep a long time."

"Actually," Ranger started the Cayenne and pulled away from the curb, "that's about right for a normal day of you waking up." Stephanie mock laughed at him and his attempt at a joke.

"What did you discover?"

"Honestly, the cops think it is a coincidence, but I think there is a strong correlation to the beheadings. And the fact that both were your skips, I don't like it."

"So, what does this mean?"

"It means that after we pick Binkie up, you're going to start running your searches. I don't want to tell you not to leave RangeMan, but you really need to watch yourself."

"And the Three Stooges?"

Ranger shook his head, "They are staying here for the time being then go back to the station. Pretty routine. Slater is leaving for DC this afternoon. He'll be back at the end of the week.

"What about my other FTA?" Stephanie pointed to the floor where the file sat.

Ranger gave a sideways glance and made a sharp turn at a light. "Where's he live?" Stephanie gave the address and Ranger quickly located the address and pulled in front of Garvin's house. "Wait here." Ranger jogged up to the house and stood at the door preparing to knock but paused. His foot gently tapped the bottom of the door. He reached behind him and retrieved his gun. Stephanie gulped as she watched Ranger signal for her to remain in the car as he stepped through the open door.

Tensely, Stephanie watched the door, waiting. After what seemed like forever, Ranger returned to the entry empty handed. Startled, Stephanie turned around at the sound of a car screeching to a stop behind her. "What the hell? A police car?"

Two officers she didn't recognize emerged from their car and walked up to Ranger. He spoke briefly to them and motioned to the house. They nodded and proceeded into Garvin's house and Ranger walked back to the Cayenne. Stephanie rolled her window down and Ranger leaned in resting his forearms on the window. "This may take awhile. Tank is going to come pick you up."

"What's going on Ranger?" Stephanie looked over his shoulder back at the house.

"'Fraid you got another freebie body receipt."

"Wh…huh?"

"Garvin's cut ear to ear."

"You mean, he…he's dead?" Stephanie whispered this, thinking that maybe if she said it quiet enough it wasn't true.

"I'm going to be awhile since I happened upon the body."

"Oh, god, Ranger! Is his head still attached?"

Ranger eyed a black Escalade coming down the street and turned his attention back to Stephanie, "I guess this one could be classified as being attached." Tank jumped out of the vehicle that pulled next to Ranger's Porsche.

Ranger walked around and took Tank aside, nodding to Vince who was behind the wheel. "Take Stephanie back to RangeMan. Tank, make sure she has someone with her if she leaves the building."

"How bad is it, Boss?" Tank's deep voice was lowered as he looked in at Stephanie who gave him a finger wave.

Ranger shook his head, his masked demeanor trying to show through, "I don't know. But both her skips are dead." Tank nodded in understanding and Ranger turned his attention to the RangeMan vehicle. "Vince, go to St. Francis and pick up Binkie. The hospital is waiting to release him to us. Take him to his sister's house outside of Philly." Vince raised his eyebrows and Ranger continued. "She is a nurse. I spoke with her on Sunday and she informed me she would take care of him for the next few weeks until his cast is removed and he becomes more mobile." Vince saluted and drove off to collect Binkie.

They watched the taillights fade. Both men could feel uneasiness growing between them. Ranger composed himself and turned back to his comrade. "Take the Cayenne. Send someone to pick me up later this afternoon. Start running searches on this case. I've got a really bad feeling about this, Tank. I don't know, it just doesn't seem right. This is rapidly passing Miami and Pinkie is still out there." Ranger stole a glance to his car. "Watch out for her, Tank."

Tank placed a hand on Ranger's shoulder. "It's already done, man."

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**There's quite a storm brewing on the horizon. Steph and her skips, Joe and Paige! You know you want to give me your feedback! Thanks for reading!**


	24. Chapter 24

*****Sorry for the length of time between the updates! I usually don't go this long but I've been darn busy. Just in case you recognize some of the really hot characters....they are not mine. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Thank you all so much for the feedback and the reviews, you have all been so kind! On to the story...*****

Previously...

_They watched the taillights fade. Both men could feel uneasiness growing between them. Ranger composed himself and turned back to his comrade. "Take the Cayenne. Send someone to pick me up later this afternoon. Start running searches on this case. I've got a really bad feeling about this, Tank. I don't know, it just doesn't seem right. This is rapidly passing Miami and Pinkie is still out there." Ranger stole a glance to his car. "Watch out for her, Tank."_

_Tank placed a hand on Ranger's shoulder. "It's already done, man."_

* * *

The ride back to RangeMan in the Porsche was quiet, but it felt like a different quiet with Tank driving. Stephanie watched the familiar sites pass by as they turned onto Haywood.

"Tank?" Tank turned his head to acknowledge Stephanie as the sleek black car moved into the garage. Stephanie bit her lip and sat silent for several beats. "Never mind." Stephanie unbuckled her seatbelt and felt a firm but soft hand grasp over hers causing her to look up at into the large man's face.

"Steph, I know this situation isn't ideal for you."

"It isn't that, Tank. I don't mind staying down at RangeMan. Really, I don't. It's just…" She sighed heavily and stopped speaking, leaning her head into the headrest. _'Why me? I understand what my mother means! It's always me!"_

"Steph, don't think that it's you. You do have a tendency to act like a magnet for disaster, but this time around, it's different."

'_Damn ESP.'_ Stephanie turned back to Tank. "How's that?" There was more of a slightly snotty tone than intended and she knew Tank didn't deserve her attitude. She wasn't mad at anyone in particular just frustrated at the situation.

Tank turned the engine off and sighed heavily. Looking pointedly at Stephanie he gripped the steering wheel hard and cleared his throat. "I'm going to tell you something, and it doesn't leave this car." Stephanie felt her eyes grow large. "Understood?" Like a bobble head doll, Steph shook her head incessantly. "You know that Ranger is involved with the TPD and their investigation."

"That's not exactly a secret, Tank. We went to the police meeting remember? Ranger told me awhile ago that he wasn't going to do anything about this whole situation. Then the pictures showed up and I have a new photo stalker."

"That is true, but," His voice was deep and serious. He clenched his jaw twice and turned to Stephanie. "Ranger had already been investigating on the side before TPD asked for his involvement."

Stephanie's eyes got wide and she took a sharp breath. "So Ranger lied to me about his involvement?" Her voice unintentionally went up a few squeaks.

"No, no. Not like that at all, Steph." Tank chose his words very carefully. "You need to understand that Ranger hasn't been doing anything secretive or lied to you about this case. Understood?"

"Well, he certainly hasn't told me everything. Like this for instance." Stephanie was suddenly feeling very Burg and tried to tame the beast so she didn't lash out at Tank.

"Steph, do you think that Ranger would lie to you?" Tank's eyes were boring through her head.

"Well…"

"We're talking no one knew what he was doing. Not even me. So, do you honestly believe that Ranger would lie to you?"

"I guess not…no." Steph played with her fingers and audibly sighed. "In fact, I don't think he's ever lied to me, he tells me things that are for my best interest; in fact he probably tells me more than I need to hear."

"He's a good man, Steph. Are we okay on the fact that no one is hiding anything from you?" Stephanie nodded and visibly calmed down, so Tank continued. "Since the whole incident when RangeMan got setup in Miami, Ranger's been _monitoring_ the situation on the sly. Never contacting anyone involved. Never saying anything to anyone. Up until last week I didn't even know what he was doing."

"I guess it's the whole 'keep your friends close and enemies closer' thing, huh?"

"Exactly."

"Then why hasn't he made any headway, why bring me on?"

"He's only done a surface investigation, just checking the information freeways, phone records, credit information, nothing too deep. But now," Tank trailed off.

"Now he has me to baby-sit." Stephanie felt her face fall.

"Wrong again, Steph. Protecting you is a bonus and a very valid reason to continue on this case. The thing is, your information searches are going to be target specific. He's onto something big. We're talking huge. Rotten, Steph, straight to the core."

"As in local?" Stephanie furrowed her brow.

"As in mole."

"Holy shit, Tank! I thought this stuff only happened in the movies." Stephanie tapped her fingers on the immaculate black dash. "You know, when Ranger was telling me about Miami, he mentioned something about serious bureaucratic bullshit transpiring. How he didn't trust the institutions involved. Do you think Miami is what he was talking about?"

"Well, that could have been figurative instead of specific."

"What about the information we're going to feed the police?" Stephanie hadn't quite figured out how they were going to lead them away.

Tank shook his head and smiled broadly, "That's too good for me to share. I'm going to let the boss take care of that one for you."

"Okay. Then how exactly are you going to bait out the mole?"

"It's RangeMan's goal to make waves and whoever is behind this shit aware that we know something is going down. We need proof."

"And you can't exactly make proof?"

Tank let out a barking laugh that startled Stephanie, "Weeellll, technically we can, but unfortunately, not this time. This person is too good. This person has covered their ass so well it looks like he or she doesn't even have an ass."

"What makes you think it's only one person? Why not two or three or more?" Stephanie was leaning against the door taking it all in.

"There could be more than one, but the probability is low."

"But still possible?"

Tank shrugged and turned his mouth down, "I suppose there is always the possibility to anything." At that moment, Stephanie's stomach made itself known. On cue, Tank looked at his watch and smiled. "Hmmm. Past one. Let's go see what Ella has for lunch, shall we?"

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As bodies moved in and out of the house, a lone black clad figure stood on the sidewalk near the police cruisers watching Garvin's house and observing everyone's actions. Activity had definitely increased from the time Tank and Stephanie left for RangeMan, however, the police scenery hardly changed from the last homicide site. The same officers and police cars had transferred from one homicide site to the next. Ranger stood with his arms folded ticking the moments for the final car to arrive. As if on cue, he recognized the SUV pulling to the curb and two familiar people exited the car.

Joe cut his eyes to Ranger while he proceeded to walk to Captain Moore. They immediately engaged in conversation. Moore pointed to the house and motioned to Ranger telling the tale with his arm movements. Paige nodded her head a lot and then excused herself, jogging towards the house.

"Have you questioned him?" Moore blinked and furrowed his brow as he followed Joe's head nod.

"In terms of what detective?" Moore averted his eyes to Ranger then quickly returned his attention to Joe. "We already have his statement; he called us."

"No leads?" The Captain shook his head. Joe shot his eyes in Ranger's direction. "And he's clean?" Joe asked. The Captain shifted from one foot to the next not answering. "I am the detective, and I am homicide. Well, I guess that since I'm fresh on the site I'll go and ask him a few questions."

"Jesus, Detective. RangeMan is a trusted company around these parts. You really think that he would implicate himself?"

"Sometimes we become too complacent with the people around us and we immediately disregard them as suspect." Joe patted the captain on the shoulder who nodded in compliance.

"Shit," Moore said under his breath. He knew it was protocol, but he just trusted Manoso too much to suspect him.

Ranger watched with amusement as Joe approached in full bad ass cop mode, his cop face never wavering.

"Morelli," Ranger cordially acknowledged.

"Manoso. So you found the body?"

"Yes."

"And he wasn't alive when you found him?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Did you break into the house?"

"No."

"How did you get in the house?"

"I walked." Ranger felt quite conceited with his response internally chuckling at his own humor.

"Don't be a smart ass, Manoso. Why did you go in the house?"

"No one answered the door."

"Are you currently carrying any weapons?" Joe shot his questions off with rapidity. Ranger gave him a blank stare, his arms crossed casually across his chest. "Are you carrying any weapons?" Joe repeated knowing full well Ranger was carrying a gun.

Ranger continued to stare, taciturn to Joe's question. Ranger's mind was reeling and gradually he dropped his blank face and felt a smug look replace it, feeling the corner of his mouth slightly lift. "Damn it, Manoso, I'm going to ask you one more time, and if you don't answer me, I'm taking you downtown for further questioning. Are you currently carrying any weapons?"

Ranger held the stare and said nothing, he only blinked.

Morelli grabbed Ranger and flipped him around gruffly, walking him to the nearby cruiser and slamming him against the hood. "Ricardo Manoso, you are under arrest for failure to consent with an officer of the law. You have the right to remain silent, though that doesn't seem to be a problem for you…" Joe bantered off the Miranda rights as he continued to push Ranger against the cruiser as he cuffed him. "Stay." Joe patted Ranger down and retrieved the Beretta from his waist, a Sig from his right leg, a Kershaw knife from his left thigh, and a 9mm Glock from his left ankle. "Holy shit, you expecting a war?"

"I don't believe in pussy artillery." Ranger said.

"Shut up and get in the back." Joe opened the police cruiser door and slid Ranger into the back seat slamming the door with a smile of satisfaction. Ranger put his head down and Joe walked over to Captain Moore and showed him Ranger's small arsenal. Joe disappeared into the house and came back with Paige in tow. She smirked and nodded her head and walked to Joe's SUV. Joe climbed into the cruiser and glanced in his review mirror at his passenger. Ranger shifted in the seat adjusting his cuffed hands behind his back.

"You look pretty damn good in the back seat, Manoso." Joe said as he pulled away from the curb followed by Joe's SUV with Paige behind the wheel. Joe couldn't see it, but Ranger was flipping him off.

000000

Paige jumped out of the car and ran up to Joe as he exited the police cruiser. "Joe, you think this is a good idea?" Paige asked.

"He wasn't cooperating, Paige. Besides, I found a knife on him and the guy had his fucking throat cut. That right there is probable cause." Joe reassured her.

"That's true, and it _is _nice to see him in the backseat."

"Ha! That's what I told him! Let's get him inside."

Joe pulled Ranger from the backseat and guided him into the station. They walked into the station and several murmurs and gasps followed Joe as he led a cuffed Ranger into an interrogation room. He plopped him down into a metal chair and uncuffed his hands; recuffing them in the front. "You have anything to say before we proceed?" Joe asked sitting across the table.

"Yes." Ranger said looking through Morelli's eyes.

Joe lifted his palm up indictive for him to proceed.

"I expect all my belongings back within the hour."

"We're just going to run some information and we'll go from there. Now, you want to tell me what you were doing at Garvin Tucker's house?"

"Fuck, Morelli. You really think I just went there to kill him? You really are a shitty cop." Ranger clasped his cuffed hands together and tilted his head. "I always thought you were a good man with a shitty job. Now I'm beginning to think you're a shitty man with a good job."

Joe slammed his hands on the tin table and stood so fast his chair flipped back. The clang of the metal striking the cement floor was deafening and reverberated off the walls. Joe's eyes flashed with fury as he leapt across the table and crouched down in front of Ranger, his breathing laborious as he held on to the final threads of his temper. Ranger never flinched.

"I believe I have a phone call due to me." Ranger whispered to Joe's scarlet face and black eyes.

"Fine." Joe walked to the side of the room and banged on the door. The officer on the other side responded by opening the door and stepping aside as Joe stormed past. The officer stood Ranger and led him to the phone. Ranger nodded to the officer and turned his back to allow some "privacy" during his call. Ranger picked up the receiver with his cuffed hands and lodged it between his shoulder and neck as he awkwardly dialed the number.

"Yes?"

"Tank, it's me."

"Ranger?"

"You run any information yet?"

"No. I was just going to have Stephanie start running searches for…"

"No. Just have her do what's in her box until I get there. No new searches."

"Anything else?" Tank sounded suspicious.

"I'm ready for my ride."

"All right. You want me to send Lester?"

"No. Just you."

"You still at the FTA's?"

"No."

"Where you at?"

Ranger adjusted the phone to his ear with his shackled hand and looked over at Joe. He and Chief Larson were in an animated discussion. "TPD."

"Come again?"

"Morelli arrested me."

"Fuck, man."

"Put Santos in charge." Ranger felt a tap on his shoulder. He nodded to the officer who pointed at his watch. "See you soon, Tank." Ranger placed the phone in the cradle and walked obediently back to the interrogation room. Ranger sat silently for quite a period of time until he heard the door open. The clicking of heels echoing off the ceiling told him exactly who arrived.

"Manoso," Paige looked smugly at him as she dropped a file on the table with a soft 'slap' sound. "I can't tell you how much joy comes to my heart seeing you in this state." She circled the table assessing Ranger like a hungry vulture finally stopping opposite of him. The scraping of metal on cement was nearly as sickening as fingernails on a chalk board as she lifted Joe's fallen chair.

"Did you come to release me, Walker?" Ranger kept his breathing slow and even as though the conversation was normal chitchat between old school friends under the swing set.

"Let's not be too hasty, Carlos." Ranger felt a slight twinge of hate as his name rolled off her tongue. "It appears that all your weapons came back as registered and," she flipped open the file and ran a finger down the page, "frankly I'm stunned that you have a legal permit to carry. Those are few and far between in this area. We're currently running your knife for any correlation to the victim."

"Legally, I believe you have to charge me with something or I am being held against my will. Do I need to call my attorney?"

"What were you doing at Garvin's house?"

"You know perfectly well what I was doing. I have an order for a failure to appear to apprehend Mr. Tucker."

"That bond was issued to one, Stephanie Plum."

"And she is employed by me."

"Is she now?"

"You can reach as far as you want, Detective, you're not going to find anything. Me, this room, you. You're still pissed off about Miami. Did you tell the Chief about Miami? About how I was falsely arrested by your intel there too? Or did you conveniently forget to mention that incident when you transferred? Perhaps Morelli…Oh…I see. It's written all over your face." Ranger stopped and raised the left side of his mouth laughing slightly through his nose, his body moving with his amusement. "You're already fucking your partner." The words dripped like acid off Ranger's lips.

Paige instantly felt her cool snap. Before she had time to react, the door burst open and Chief Larson entered the room. "This interrogation is over. Detective, everything checks out, we can not legally detain this man any further. Mr. Manoso, it has been determined that your knife was not the one that killed Garvin Tucker. Detective?" Larson reached around his waist and retrieved a small silver key.

"Yes, sir?" Paige ran a hand through her short hair and placed it on her neck. Her lips were a tight line.

"I expect a report on my desk before you leave this evening." Larson stood Ranger and unlocked the cuffs, placing a hand on his shoulder and turning him towards the door. Ranger nodded to the Chief as they walked into the hall. "This way, Mr. Manoso. Stop by the intake desk and they will have all your belongings ready." He handed Ranger a blue slip of paper, "Give them this and everything will be handled accordingly."

"Thank you, sir."

"Sorry to detain you Mr. Manoso, it was a misunderstanding." Larson was quite apologetic.

"Don't be. I understand the necessity of protocol, you're just doing your job."

Paige stood alone fuming in the vacated room. She swore loudly and punched the table turning back to reality when a voice cleared from the doorway. "Hey." She whispered as she let out a deep sigh and pulled the chair out, sitting down hard. "Fuck, me, Joe!"

"Tell me about it. You have to admit, it was a rare sight seeing him in this room." Joe said from the doorway tapping on the frame.

"Yeah. Short lived. But nice. I only hope that next time he can stay here for good and not just for lack of cooperation." Paige stared at the ceiling and her stomach growled. "Shit. I'm hungry."

"Let's go get something to eat, eh?"

"I don't want to be further on the Chief's shit list. I got a report to write before I leave and it's going to take quite awhile. I'm guessing you have one too. Let's make a date with the vending machine and get those done so we can go home." Paige grabbed the folder off the table and walked past Joe. He grabbed her waist and flipped her around, pulling her towards him.

"Sounds good. It'll be a hell of a report." Joe said.

Paige smiled and leaned in to kiss him. His embrace tightened as their kiss became more fiery and heavy. Finally breaking for air, Paige felt her cheeks flush. "We should probably get downstairs, Joe." She looked around and grabbed his ass.

"Hmmm, the sooner we get the reports done, the faster we can finish what we started right here." Joe wrapped his arm around her shoulders and he steered her towards the vending machine. "Let's get started on those reports."

000000

Ranger arrived at the intake desk and handed the clerk his blue slip of paper. She nodded to Ranger and came back carrying a dull gray plastic container. Placing it on the counter she sorted through and carefully revealed Ranger's small artillery. Smiling at Ranger she murmured something that sounded like, "Cheap ass department," as she checked inventory of Ranger's belongings. Nodding to the officer, Ranger wrapped his weapons in his jacket and walked out to meet Tank.

"Shit man. I thought you were ready. I've been waiting for three hours."

"Me too."

Tank followed the calm Cuban out to the parking lot and watched him climb into the passenger seat of the black Escalade. "What the hell happened Rangeman?" Tank started the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Like I said, Morelli arrested me." Ranger pulled up his pant leg and strapped his Sig.

"And you're okay with this?" Tank gave Ranger a bewildered look. Ranger returned the look with a sly smile and a smirk. "Oh, shit. You didn't?"

"I'm a model citizen." Ranger leaned back into the chair and began to slip into the zone.

"You baited him. You fucking baited him because you wanted him to haul your ass to jail."

Ranger said nothing, except Tank new him well enough to know Ranger was internally smiling at himself.

"You intentionally played it off like you were guilty didn't you? Shit, don't you think that this is going to look poorly on you, or possibly RangeMan?"

"On the contrary, Tank, this _plays_ to our advantage. This is only going to hurt any case they build against me. As far the company, they won't take a second look at RangeMan's involvement, just like in Miami."

"Unbelievable." Tank shook his head.

"Besides, Morelli's wanted to arrest me for years. This only makes him think he has one up on me."

"Unfuckingbelievable."

"Steph still working?" Ranger looked at his watch and noticed it was almost six.

Tank nodded. "I told her to keep working until I got back. I didn't realize it would be three hours later."

"Hmmm. Let's stop off at Shorty's. She's probably hungry and I want her to be in a good mood when I tell her what she's going to be doing."

"News travels fast man." Tank said as he made a turn at the light.

Ranger opened an eye and looked at Tank. "You're right. She most definitely knows that I was arrested and she's going to be in quite a state when we get back. It was her skip and she's probably blaming herself. Better make it Pino's."

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**Well...I hope it was worth the wait. What do you think about Joe? And also Ranger's reaction? Please send me your thoughts and love!**


	25. Chapter 25

*****Big thanks to all who have contributed and shared so many wonderful thoughts! This update is a little quicker than last week's. I've become inundated with music commitments for the next several weeks. However, I will still try to get a chapter up each week. Thank you all! **

**This is the chapter with "the plan." Language used in this chapter. Oh, and I don't own those familiar characters (in case you were wondering)*****

Previously...

_"Hmmm. Let's stop off at Shorty's. She's probably hungry and I want her to be in a good mood when I tell her what she's going to be doing."_

_"News travels fast man." Tank said as he made a turn at the light._

_Ranger opened an eye and looked at Tank. "You're right. She most definitely knows that I was arrested and she's going to be in quite a state when we get back. It was her skip and she's probably blaming herself. Better make it Pino's."_

* * *

The smell of pizza wafted through the control room gradually lifting Stephanie's head from the file. Her eyes closed as she sat fully erect, her head turning to follow the imaginary pizza-scented-vapor-fingers pulling her nostrils towards the greasy goodness.

Stephanie suddenly snapped out of her trance feeling her neck tingle. She rubbed the her head and shook it. "Huh? Pizza?" She rose from her chair and looked around the floor. "Bobby?"

"Yeah, Steph?" Bobby rolled his chair across the floor and stopped in front of her cubicle.

"Did you order pizza?" Stephanie looked quizzically around.

"Sure didn't. But that would be nice wouldn't it?" Bobby grinned. "Maybe they serve pizza in jail, you should ask Ranger."

Stephanie smacked Bobby in the arm who gave her a big smile in return. "That's not funny at all! Oh god! What if they convict him of Garvin's murder? This is all my fault!"

"Relax, Steph. It's not like they are going to give him the death penalty or anything."

"Death penalty!" Stephanie's voice sounded something between Betty Boop and Minnie Mouse.

"Hmmm. Go talk to Lester. He might have something to do with your pizza."

"Huh?" Stephanie gave him a queer look.

"The pizza? You asked about pizza." Bobby kept grinning at her

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was just…I mean, I was thinking about prison. Or, I, you know, Ranger and…geez, how could I forget about the pizza?" Stephanie was starting to breathe heavy and was getting flustered. Bobby stood and gave her a big hug.

"Go find Lester, he might have an answer for you." Bobby rolled his chair back to his desk and shook his head, chuckling to himself.

"Lester?" No response. Stephanie heard her stomach speak as she looked at her watch realizing it was after six. Knowing that Lester was in charge, she walked down to Ranger's office to inquire. She tapped on the door and Lester's head shot up.

"Shit, Beautiful! Sorry. You startled me." Lester looked around and tapped the keyboard a few times until the screen was no longer black.

"Lester?"

"Yeup. Yeah, what's going on?" Lester ran his hands over his face and shook his head.

"Were you…sleeping?" Stephanie almost whispered as she looked around the office and down the hall.

"Hell yeah! Ranger's office isn't monitored so this is the best place to sleep when he's not around. Don't tell anyone though. What's up?"

"Obviously not you." A gruff voice came from behind Stephanie causing her to yelp and turn around grabbing her heart. Stephanie squealed again when she realized who was standing behind her.

"Ranger! Oh my god!" Stephanie flung her arms around him and then quickly stepped back. "I thought they were going to book you for Garvin's murder! And then when Tank left and he said he'd be back within the hour and it's been almost four hours now and I looked…"

Ranger held his hands up and Stephanie stopped rambling.

"They let you go?" She asked.

"Yes."

"No charges?"

"Not one."

Stephanie rested her hand on her cheek and let out a loud sigh. "Thank god!" Stephanie felt Ranger's warm hand rest on her arm and she decided to not continue on any further rambling. She gave him a shy smile and looked down at the ground. Lester took this moment to quietly stand and begin sneaking towards the door. "I'm just glad you're back and not spending the night in jail."

Ranger gave her an almost smirk, "Hell would have to freeze over before that happens." He stuck his arm out and blocked the doorway. "Not so fast, Santos."

"Ahh, come on, Boss!"

"Sleeping on the job is not tolerated. You can work graveyard the rest of the week, in addition to your normal shift."

"Gee, _can _I?" Lester mocked.

"And you _will_ meet me on the mats tomorrow after your shift." Ranger spoke with finality and Lester swore under his breath. Ranger turned and directed his attention to the control room. "I want everyone in conference room B." All the employees stood from their cubicles and respective locations and began to walk towards the conference room. Lester got a hop to his step but stopped as a strong hand stalled his progress.

"What?" Lester threw up his hands in defense.

"You are on monitor duty, Santos." Ranger stated flatly. Lester frowned and mumbled something as he walked over to the monitors and slumped into a chair. Vince smirked and let a snort out as he walked by Lester and stopped when he noticed Ranger staring at him.

"Since you find humor in Santos' predicament, you can commiserate with him for the next hour." Vince dropped his head and turned on his heels muttering as he dropped his muscular frame into a chair next to Lester. Lester smacked him on the back and laughed, ignoring the glare from Ranger. "You both will be filled in shortly."

"Don't you think that's a little harsh?" Stephanie asked as she waved to Lester and Vince.

Ranger's answer to her question was a slightly raised eyebrow.

"Men. Never mind."

"Get off me Santos!" Vince shrugged off a laughing Lester.

"We get to share some quality time, man." Lester said tapping on the keyboard.

"Yeah, but you didn't have to drive Binkie to his sister's house today. When Tank asked for a driver to get Boss, I lost the toss to Woody."

"I hear she's a looker." Lester gave him a huge grin.

"Only if you count looking the other way." Vince ran a hand over his face and visibly shuddered.

Stephanie listened to the exchange and shook her head. Ranger turned around and guided Stephanie to the conference room. The smell of pizza was overwhelming as they walked into the sounds of chatter uncharacteristically jovial for RangeMan.

"Ranger! Did you do this?" Stephanie turned around and looked wide-eyed at Ranger, her mouth dropping open.

Ranger said nothing and proceeded to the head of the table. As he sat down, the chatter immediately ceased. All the employees eyed their boss and the fifteen extra-large pizza boxes sitting in three stacks down the middle of the table with a large salad at one end closest to Ranger. Ranger held a steely stare around the room and placed his elbows on the table. The Rangemen quickly snapped to attention and scuttled to find a seat around the large conference table, scraping chairs and bumping into each other. Ranger continued to wear his blank face as everyone assumed business mode; Ranger began.

"Just in case anyone chooses to make a comment that will land them on monitor duty with Santos or the mats at 4am for the next week, I was arrested this afternoon and kept in an interrogation room, alone." A few smirks could be seen, but quickly vanished. Ranger clearing the air.

"As you are aware, we are going to be assisting TPD with information searches correlating to their ongoing investigation of the SA case."

Stephanie raised her hand. Ranger closed his eyes and took a breath in through his nose. "Yes?"

"What's an SA?"

"Special Artillery." Stephanie gave him a scrunched look and shook her head. "The guns."

"Ah." Stephanie slumped back into her chair.

Ranger continued. "Anything that is asked of any RangeMan employee by the police, whether it be a search, form, information, computer analysis, a date, anything, you will notify me first as to the reason for your search. TPD have been instructed to come directly to me when wanting any information, but that doesn't always happen. Any information you run will come back across my desk. Nothing will be sent to TPD without my consent. If am not present and Tank or someone else is acting primary, it will remain on my desk until I personally pass the information. Anyone who violates these orders will be subject to immediate termination."

Ranger looked around the table at the blank faces all nodding in various degrees of a head bob. "We are willingly but selectively assisting TPD. The highest degree of sensitivity must be taken when dealing with this information. We believe there is a mole in the operation. I don't care if it is local PD shit they are asking of RangeMan. I cannot stress this enough: Do not become complacent." As the air sat quiet waiting for Ranger to continue, Stephanie's stomach roared through the silence.

Slumping down even farther into her seat, she felt her face grow very hot. "What?" Stephanie stared into the faces of all the Merry Men.

"Babe,"

"Well, you can't expect me to sit in a room with fifteen boxes of pizza mocking me and expect me not to be hungry." Stephanie folded her arms tightly under her breasts. Bobby let out a small snort and Cal choked trying to stifle his laugh. Ranger tilted his head up and glared at the two men.

Standing, Ranger said nothing and walked towards the door. He turned around facing his employees and nodded to Tank who took one stack of pizza boxes and the salad as he left the room. Stephanie's mouth dropped open and her eyes got very wide. She moved her lips to speak, but Ranger held up his hand.

"I trust everyone understands. Proceed as usual with your tasks at hand. Brown, Cal, Steph, come with me. Everyone else, you have thirty minutes until you report back to the floor. People slapped one another on the back and stood talking amongst themselves as they scattered the pizza boxes across the table and grabbed pieces of greasy goodness from the open boxes. Stephanie tried to grab a piece as she walked behind Bobby but Ranger grabbed her hand and guided her to the door.

"Man, Boss! You should get arrested more often!" Ram yelled from across the room. He raised a piece of pizza as a salute."

"Tomorrow, four." Ranger glared back. Ram shrugged and grabbed another piece from a near empty box.

Ranger walked a short distance down the hall to another conference room. This room was significantly smaller than the other conference room. The table was large enough to comfortably seat six, eight if needed. Six chairs were around the table and two more were placed against the wall. Ranger flipped the light on motioning for the others to enter. Once they entered, Ranger stepped back towards the control room leaving the three of them alone. Stephanie looked back longingly towards the door and pizza and sighed as she joined Cal and Bobby at the table. Cal sat across from Bobby and Stephanie sat in a chair next to Bobby. She looked down at the table feeling dejected and hungry. Bobby reached over and squeezed her hand, causing her to look up and give him a forced smile.

"It's because I spoke out in front of everyone, isn't it?" Stephanie tapped her heel impatiently. "And because you two laughed."

"Guess we're all on the shit list." Bobby grinned and stretched his legs out and laced his fingers behind his head. "Just try not to say anything when he gets back. Think of all the wonderful rabbit food waiting for us down the hall in the break room.

"Easy for you to say. You can eat that Army crap in a brown bag and call yourself satisfied." Stephanie shot back.

"Brown bag? You mean MRE's?"

"Yeah, those military things they pass off as food."

Bobby shrugged, "They're not that bad, especially if you trade around with other people."

"Yeah, and you can make a hell of a bomb with your little magnesium food warmer, too." Cal added.

"Yeeeah." Bobby and Cal bumped knuckles and Stephanie sat shaking her head.

After several minutes Ranger returned with an armful of water bottles. Stephanie rolled her eyes and sat up. "Water, Bobby!" She hissed into Bobby's ear. "They get pizza, we get water."

Ranger placed the bottles on the table and took the chair next to Cal. The three sat silently watching Ranger. Stephanie placed a hand on her stomach in an attempt to stifle the beast and reached for a bottle of water.

"You three are here for one reason. Before we discuss your purpose, we should probably settle a few things." Ranger motioned to the door and Tank walked in with the five pizza boxes and the salad. Stephanie instantly felt her mouth salivate as Tank meticulously placed the boxes side by side the length of the table, stacking one. He took his place between Cal and Bobby on the end and signaled to Ranger. "It's been my experience that food creates better listening capabilities, for certain people."

Stephanie immediately stood up and grabbed the doubled up box, pulling them towards her. Flipping the lid open, her moans caused everyone to stop and stare.

"I'm sorry. I'm just really hungry and this is sooo good!" Tank chuckled as he took a slice from another box. Ranger seemed content with his salad and the rest of them managed to deplete the pizza supply without a problem. A short while later a lone piece was left in one box and well over half a pizza was left in the box Stephanie was hoarding to the side. Stephanie reached for the lone piece, placed it in her box, and closed the lid slipping it on her lap. She looked around and shrugged. "What?"

"Babe, really?"

"They're for Lester and Vince. Withholding pizza from anyone is practically a crime. They'll need it when they get off monitor duty." Stephanie said. Ranger looked at his watch and nodded to Tank. Tank excused himself. "They'll forget that you even brought pizza and will be thanking me for saving them some food."

"That is true, Rangeman." Bobby said wiping his greasy hands on his cargoes leaning forward ready to deal business. Tank returned with Lester and Vince in tow. Stephanie beamed at them and placed the pizza box on the table.

"Ahh, Beautiful! I can always count on you to take care of me!" Lester gave Steph a peck on the cheek and the two men ravaged the pizza box. Bobby gave Ranger the 'I told you so look' and Ranger took that moment to snap into business mode.

"Those of you in this room are part of a privileged information group."

"Like a secret society?" Stephanie asked.

"Not exactly, Babe."

"So we're going to share the information with everyone else?"

"Not exactly."

"Then how is our information not secret?"

"Because you are still going to work with the other guys."

"But how can we work with the other Rangemen if we have to keep our information secret?" Stephanie kept shooting off her questions and the other guys were watching the bantering back and forth like a tennis match, heads moving and all.

Try as he might, Ranger worked extra hard to not let a sigh escape. Ranger knew, as did his men, that Stephanie was the only person who could be a smart ass to him without repercussions, even in front of his men.

"Because it's not."

"Oh." Stephanie took a sip of her water and puckered like a fish.

"The information that we are going to discuss is not necessary for all the other employees. I don't want the whole company scrounging for information and tying up all our resources. Past experience has shown that when the whole company is looking for sporadic leads with vague information, a lot of information tripping and excessive work occurs. It's counterproductive. I don't want that. I want to be as efficient as possible. While we are working this case, everyone else is going to be working on the logistical police shit."

"Zo vare dof 'at put uff?" Lester mumbled through a mouth of cheese and grease.

"That puts us with the specific shit. Walker and Garomin are going to try to hang us."

"More so you." Tank added in a deep voice.

Ranger nodded and continued, "But we're not going to give them that chance."

"So, what is it that we are going to be doing that is so special?" Cal waved an arm around the table indicating the 'we' aspect.

Ranger's demeanor turned icy as he considered his reply, "Our efforts are going to be targeting the people involved within the departments."

"What? Plural?" Came a few conglomerated replies.

"That's right. You're going to be pulling everything on the Miami ATF, Miami PD, Miami FBI, Trenton PD, Trenton FBI, and RangeMan.

"Say what?" Vince gave Ranger and incredulous look.

"What are you talking about? RangeMan? We're looking internally?" Stephanie couldn't believe she heard Ranger right.

"We need to eliminate anything and everyone who is not suspect. Starting with us. Once we decrease the size of the pool, we will be able to work jointly and more efficiently."

Lester let out a low whistle and leaned back in his chair. "How deep does this go, Boss?"

"We don't know."

"But you _do_ know that it is not just some run-of-the-mill gang banger scum?"

"Yes. He or she probably has minions. Cal, you are Miami PD, Vince, you are on Trenton PD." Both men nodded. "Steph, you will look at Miami ATF and your skips."

"I'm sorry. My skips?" Steph bit her lip.

"Yes. They are all dead aren't they?" Steph nodded. "Then find a connection. Santos, RangeMan Miami. I trust you to work silently on this?"

"Absolutely, Boss." Lester nodded completely serious.

"When you are finished you will partner with Stephanie working Miami ATF and her skips." Ranger looked over at Bobby who had a gleam in his eye. "Bobby, Miami FBI."

"Ahhh, Rangeman, I knew you loved me." Bobby gave a big smile and raised his eyebrows. "I really do hate that bitch, you know." Everyone grumbled in agreement.

"Tank will work RangeMan Trenton. I'm sure we're clean Tank, but don't be complacent. You will also handle Trenton FBI."

"You got it." Tank replied.

"Though it is not likely, if another employee inquires as to what you are doing, remember, it is not a secret." Ranger made a point to look at Stephanie and emphasize the last five words, "Correspond with them, with the exception of Tank and Lester's initial searches, as they may have information that can help you. We are working together, our target searches are just specific. Commiserate with those in this room frequently." Silence fell and everyone looked around the table at their coworkers, an uneasiness settling in the air. "It goes without saying, make sure that Steph is protected at all times." Stephanie shot Ranger a look she couldn't quite discern the message she was trying to convey. "No matter how careful we are, somehow, somewhere, someone on the outside is going to catch wind of what we are doing. I don't want her to be the target of their revenge. Get to work."

Everyone stood and filed out talking in hushed voices. Stephanie didn't move. Instead she remained planted to her chair, assessing Ranger. She kept thinking back to her conversation with Tank and felt unsatisfied.

"Babe?"

Stephanie didn't respond; she held a vacant stare.

"Babe?"

"What, Ranger?" She blinked several times and had an edge to her voice. Ranger walked back to the table and sat next to her. _'Damn it, why do I always have to explain myself to Ranger and drag information out of him?'_

"Steph, are you not comfortable doing the searches? Lester can run it on his own."

Stephanie sighed. "It's not that." She figured now was a good a time as any to ask. "Ranger, what about the information we are going to send to…you know, the stooges?"

This got a grin out of Ranger, or rather, a slightly upturned mouth.

"Tank wouldn't tell me. He said it was too good and that you should tell me."

"He did?" Ranger asked.

Stephanie nodded.

"I'm not keeping things from you, Babe, if that's what you think. I figured there was an awful lot going on I didn't want to overwhelm you."

"Are you kidding? Ranger! I've been waiting since before you got arrested! So, how are we going to pin them?

"We're not exactly pinning them, Babe."

"We're not?"

"No. You wanted to feed them the stuff, give them more than they deserve."

"Well, yes. So?"

"We know that there is a mole and it's not some random person." Ranger talked slowly and decisively to make sure Stephanie completely understood. "Right?"

"Yes."

"We're going to give them the information." Ranger now gave a Stephanie a wily smile. "We're going to lead them back onto themselves."

"What? But, how is that going to work?" Stephanie shook her head confused.

"Think about it. If the stooges are convinced that we are trying to hide something and are hoping to implicate us, they are going to be digging up that information themselves, not asking RangeMan for the intel. All the while they are going to try and access RangeMan hoping to grab something on us. However, when we push information that suggests they are dirty, they're either going to get pissed and deny or back off. All the while we're giving them the real deal and we still have our asses covered for not withholding information."

"Whoa." Stephanie slumped back into the chair her eyes big blue orbs. "Holy shit, Batman! That's better than any plan I was devising."

"You started it, Babe." This got a smile out of Stephanie. Ranger stood and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "You should be able to get a little bit of information this evening."

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Stephanie looked up at the clock and stretched. She had started running her skips and pulled up preliminary files on all three. It was well past eleven and she decided to turn in and make a phone call.

"Yes?"

"Hey, Joe."

"Cu…Steph?" Joe's voice came through.

"How's it going over there?"

"Got a hell of a report to do as you can imagine."

Stephanie rolled her eyes at this, thinking of Morelli arresting Ranger. "I understand. I was getting ready to turn in myself."

"You're staying at RangeMan, yes?"

"Those are the orders." Stephanie felt a tug at her chest and couldn't help but feel the conversation was incredibly stilted and emotionless. Her breathing began to increase and she felt her chest tighten further and eyes begin to feel dry.

"Yeah, well, I should get going. I just started my second report. I'll talk to you later." Joe spoke flatly and Stephanie could hear him writing while he was talking. She turned in her chair and placed her elbow on her desk.

"Joe, I would…" Stephanie stopped herself and laid her forehead into her hand. "Alright. Bye."

"Stephanie?" Paige asked Joe as she sat next to him writing her own report.

"Yeah." Joe threw his phone onto the desk and sighed. "Fuck."

"Hey, it's all good, Joe. Worse things have happened. Hurry up, I'm ready to leave anytime, I'm reported out." Paige drooped her arm across Joe's shoulder and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Me too. Hopefully another hour tops." Joe and Paige put their heads down and painstakingly continued their reports.

Stephanie closed her phone and brought her other hand up, cupping her whole face. "Shit." She muttered as she wiped her eyes with her middle fingers. Stephanie stayed at her desk for the next few minutes composing herself thoughts and whispering into her hands like the angel and devil Steph were sitting on her shoulders. "He arrested Ranger. But we've known each other for so long. I shouldn't feel this shitty. Still, he's my friend. But friends aren't suppose to make you cry." Taking a deep, non-soothing breath, she wiped her eyes, pushed her chair in, and exited her cubicle. The floor was relatively empty with the exception of a couple of men sitting at their desk on the opposite side and Lester on monitor duty. His figure was illuminated green from the instrument panels and the screens. She smiled to herself thinking of how he got himself into the current situation.

"Goodnight, Les." Stephanie waved to him as she passed by on her way to the elevator punching the down button.

"Night, Beautiful."

"Try not to fall asleep." She giggled as the doors opened and she stepped in, pressing '4.'

"Har, har." Lester watched the doors close and turned his attention back to the monitors watching Steph in the brief elevator trip. Her head was lax and her shoulders internal monitors showed empty halls and mostly vacant desks. The client monitors showed even less activity. Lester reached for the phone base and pressed the intercom button. Replacing the earpiece to his head, he listened to the beeps waiting for an answer. The tones stopped, indicating the phone was answered.

"I don't know how much longer she can hold it in. She's strong, but…I don't know, man."

There was no perceptible breathing or even a reply so Lester went on, "Tonight wasn't a good night."

"And?"

"It isn't a matter of time any more, it's a matter of days now before she finds out." Lester looked around the control room. "You need to tell her."

"No."

"Fuck, man. She needs to…"

"Find out for herself. It's the only way for her."

"She's getting ready to lose it. I saw that tonight." Lester blew out a sigh.

"Keep an eye on her."

"Sure thing, Boss." Lester disconnected and leaned back in his chair. "Damn."

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**Was Ranger's plan what you were expecting? Should it have gone a different way? I've had so many curious people I couldn't let it hang out another chapter. And what about Ranger's decision to let things be with Paige/Joe/Steph? Thank you all so much for reading!**


	26. Chapter 26

*****Yeehaw, I got it up this week! Thanks for the reviews everyone, it always makes my day. My gift to you: what you've been waiting for, read on.**

**There is significant language use in this chapter, don't say I didn't warn you. Hopefully, you likey.*****

Previously....

_"She's getting ready to lose it. I saw that tonight." Lester blew out a sigh._

_"Keep an eye on her."_

_"Sure thing, Boss." Lester disconnected and leaned back in his chair. "Damn."_

* * *

Lester sat staring at the monitors thinking what an ass Ranger was being. He began to muse about Stephanie and the situation. '_Stephanie had all the right in the world to know that Morelli was fucking his partner. Shit, she walked in on her husband fucking the barnyard woman.' _The only reason Lester knew was because he and Bobby obtained a copy of the police interrogation recording, just in case it "mysteriously" disappeared at TPD_. 'We all want the best for Stephanie, and we all watch out for her like a sister.'_

Doing another once over of the monitors, Lester leaned back in his chair and began preparations for a very long night. Since Ranger was feeling particularly jovial about him falling asleep, he made sure that Lester was running the monitors solo tonight. The justification was such, that it would ensure Lester stayed awake and didn't rely on someone else to keep watch. Ranger figured that was the best way to teach Lester a lesson. Lester figure it was the best was for Ranger to be an even bigger ass. Santos never did anything stag.

Lester glanced at the clock and sighed. Eight more hours. It was going to be a tediously slow night.

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The darkness in the apartment was consuming. For the second night in a row, Stephanie sat on the couch staring into nothingness. Listening to the monotonous squeak of Rex's wheel, she sighed and went to the counter. Fishing through a cupboard, she found a box of Cheerios and dropped a few into his dish.

"Hey, little guy." Rex didn't break stride. "Hmph."

Getting conversation out of Rex was almost as languid as getting personal information out of Ranger. Stephanie retreated to the bedroom. Woody and the gang brought her bed over and the lone chair from her bedroom to make it appear homier. She walked into the spacious bathroom and flipped on the vanity lights. She took a step back as her reflection stared back at her.

"Sweet, mother…" Stephanie brought her hands to her face and rubbed her cheeks like a rubber mask. Though she didn't feel fatigued, her reflection looked hallow and removed. The sullen person looking back couldn't have been her. Could it? Stephanie shook her head and glanced around the pale sepia walls, she bent over and splashed warm water on her face and sufficiently scrubbed off the grime of the day. After brushing her teeth, she felt good enough for bed and trudged out to her room dropping her clothes along the way. Down to a pair of panties she slipped on a clean camisole and flopped onto her bed.

Stephanie's thoughts drifted back to the dead bodies and the blood she encountered during the day. Shuddering, she closed her eyes and tried to pull more vivid details from the first crime scene. She chuckled as she thought of Slater triumphantly holding up the bag with Ollie's head and how she called him Larry. Her mind began reeling through the past several days and weeks stopping again on the events of today and her conversation with Joe. His distance. Their lack of communication. Her desire to work against him.

"Shit." She murmured out loud. She punched her pillow trying to get comfortable and rolled over attempting sleep. Hours seemingly passed as she tossed and turned aimlessly, fighting her thoughts and trying to clear her head for a few hours of undisturbed sleep. Finally, breathing out a frustrated sigh, she rolled over and looked at the clock. "Damn it. Three-thirty? That's it? Ugh!"

Throwing off her covers, she wrapped a blanket around herself and walked to the window overlooking Haywood. No cars moved through the empty streets and most reasonable people were still asleep. Placing a hand on the glass, it felt cool to her touch. As she dropped her head and rested it upon the window, cold sensation contrasted the warmth of her head. Her sighs and breathing were the only noises filling her apartment. "Even Rex has sense enough to be asleep." She murmured as she stared at the windowsill.

Her eyes wandered across the glass as she rubbed circles across the surface. Gritting her teeth, Stephanie's head suddenly shot up. Placing her palm firmly on the window, her eyes focused outside with clarity and determination. The blanket fell to the floor as she briskly walked back to her bedroom and threw on a pair of jeans and maroon sweater. She glanced at the clock as she pulled her purse off the breakfast bar.

"Ten to four…Ranger will already be down on the mats warming up." Her hand reached for the doorknob and she hesitated, hovering over the smooth brass. Stephanie straightened her shoulders and nodded as she mentally gave herself a pep talk. "Let's do this." Opening the door, she glanced down the hallway hoping she wouldn't run into Ram. He was never known for being early on the mats. The coast was clear, so she quickly ran past two apartment doors to the stairwell.

"Thank god for lack cameras in the stairwell. Time for the distraction." Stephanie quickly descended the stairs to the garage, pausing at each floor platform and slinking around the cameras. Stopping just outside the main garage door, she pulled out the keys to the X6 and her cell phone. Clearing her throat, she pressed a button and waited, listening.

"Yes?"

"Lester?" Stephanie said in the sleepiest groggiest voice she could muster. She heard the chair roll as Lester sat up. Stephanie opened the garage exit and crawled along the wall ducking around the parked cars as she made her way to the BMW.

"Steph? What's wrong?" Lester was on alert.

"Um…nothing, why?"

"Beautiful, it's nearly four o'clock in the morning. What are you doing up?"

"Oh, I was, thinking about the accidents and Carl." Stephanie beeped the X6 open and started the car with her hand over the receiver.

"Oh?"

'_I'm going to hell for lying!' _Stephanie put the car in reverse and paused. "I've been so, uh, so busy, I haven't had time to see Carl and was wondering if you could pull some information for me."

"At four in the morning?"

"Well, I know it's early but I remembered I hadn't seen him. I, I just didn't want to forget. I've been so insensitive for not checking up on him, I wanted to see him today. I figure if you got the info for me, you could remind me because I'm sure I'll forget we even had this conversation." Stephanie waited hoping her story didn't sound too full of shit.

"And why are you up again, Steph?" Lester said.

"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry. I must have dozed off. Don't worry about it, Les, I'll try and remember to look when I come down for work later. Forget about it."

"No, no. It's okay, Beautiful, what do you want me to look up? Give me a second."

Stephanie heard him roll the chair and could hear the clicking sound of the keyboard. Stepping on the gas, she raced through the garage and fobbed open the gate exiting onto Haywood.

"Steph?"

"Hmmm." She said with feigned sleep.

"What do you need?"

"I'd like to know Carl's status and when or if they are allowing visitors to his room."

"All right. How about I get the information for you and put it on your desk? That way you don't have to remember."

"Oh, Lester, that sounds wonderful. Thanks." She yawned and fell silent.

"Steph?" No response. "Steph?" Lester said more forcefully.

"Huh?" Stephanie smiled at her own acting. "I'm sorry, Les, I just closed my eyes for a moment."

"Go to sleep. I'll put the info on your desk. Sweet dreams." Lester disconnected and chuckled to himself as he printed off the information and walked it down to Stephanie's desk.

Stephanie drove the familiar roads to Slater street, her heart rate gradually increasing as the gap between her and Morelli decreased. "So, it wasn't a total lie. I was planning on seeing Carl today, and now, I don't have an excuse not to." Stephanie said out loud as she made a turn and slowed the car. She pulled to the curb opposite of Joe's house and stopped. She sat idling, staring at the front door for nearly an hour as she gathered her wits. She turned off the engine and her breathing began to quicken as she opened the car door and walked the path up to the front porch. Wiping her hands on her pants, she felt her palms immediately dampen and turn clammy again. With trembling fingers, she tried to identify the house key.

"Shit." She whispered. Shaking her hands wildly as if to expel the nerves, she took in a shaky breath and inserted the key with precision. Hearing the locks tumble, she quietly stepped inside and closed the door. Normally an elephant in a china shop, she tried her best to walk with silent methodical steps. Pausing in the entry, she reassessed why she was here. It wasn't that she didn't trust Joe. Did she? But her spidey sense has been on fire for days on end every time he came around, especially with _her_. She took a glance up the stairs and tried to steady her breath. Noticing movement, she froze.

"Bob." She let out. Walking silently to the sofa where Bob was stirring, she rubbed his ears and he stuck his tongue out, licking her hand, his tail swinging full wag. "Shhh. We have to be quiet, boy." She fluffed a pillow and placed it under his head and threw a blanket over him. He calmed down and laid his head on the pillow. Stephanie patted his head, gave him a kiss, and he closed his eyes in contentment. Turning towards the stairs, she evaluated the steps like a green mile and began her ascent.

The blood was pounding in her head as her nervousness registered with her heart, pumping overtime. Taking a step to the side, she avoided the step she knew had a creak. Finally, she stood at the top of the stairs feeling like she had just completed a marathon. Joe's bedroom rest to the side. The door stood ajar. Reaching out, she pushed the door open without a squeak and stepped into the doorway. Staring at the bed, her breath caught in her throat, stifling a gasp. The red hair splayed across Joe's chest confirmed her suspicions. Although quiet, she wasn't quiet enough. The blankets moved and her eyes locked with Joe's.

"Cupcake?"

Stephanie's brain finally communicated with her legs as she backed out of the room and bolted for the stairs.

"Shit." She heard Joe's voice come from the room as he jumped out of bed and chased her down the stairs, taking two at a time. Stephanie had just reached the bottom when she felt his arms around her waist. She squeaked out a scream as he flipped her around. "Cupcake, wait."

Stephanie's eyes were filled with every emotional adjective she could possibly conjure. "Joe, I…"

"What are you doing here? Did anyone come with you? You're suppose to have security."

"What!? Are you shitting me? The fact that there is another woman in your bed that is not me and you're suddenly concerned about my safety? You don't so much as inquire about me since all this shit happened and you ask me if I came alone?" Stephanie spat out trying unsuccessfully to keep her voice in check. "Fuck you, Joe. What the hell?"

"Cup…Stephanie, I can explain."

"Explain what, Joe? How it just happened? Or that Paige just _accidentally _showed up in your bed last night? She was desperate to be held? Ha!" Stephanie struggled against Joe's grip. "Let me go."

"Are you going to run?" Stephanie didn't answer. "Are you going to run?" Joe repeated.

"No." Joe released his grip. A noise at the top of the stairs caused both of them to look up and see Paige standing in her panties and Joe's shirt.

"Go to bed, bitch." Stephanie hissed as she stalked over to the sofa next to Bob.

Paige gave Joe a chagrined look; he nodded to her tilting his head in the direction of the bedroom and she complied, closing the door. Taking a deep breath, he knew the shit had hit the fan and no amount of clean up was going to clear this situation. Steadying his temper, he flipped on the light as walked into the living room and stood in front of Stephanie. Her blue eyes were dangerously dark.

"What the hell is she doing in your bed? I've been pining about our relationship thinking that maybe you were too. No. Actually, I didn't think that. That's why I am here in your living room. I trusted you for so many years and this is what you give me? What kind of piece of shit are you?" Stephanie could feel her temper rolling out of control, and it took every iota of will power to not let loose and storm out. No. This was a conversation that needed to happen.

Stephanie stared up at the man hovering over her. Thoughts of the last week seemed to blend together into something of a montage. Joe took her hand gently and sat on the coffee table. Stephanie flinched at his gesture, but knew for once her life she had to act like an adult and talk this through.

"It wasn't suppose to happen like this. You have to believe me."

"Believe you." Stephanie repeated as a statement. "Joe, I don't know what to believe. Things like this don't _just happen_. I always thought that this was a safe place. Secure. A place that I was accustomed to running to when I need complacency."

"Complacency?"

"Yes, Joe. It's very easy to come back here because we," she pointed dramatically between them, "never change. Ever."

"Cupcake," he said.

She let out an imperceptible sigh, "Joe, things have been such a whirl the last few days and even weeks that we…"

Joe held up a hand and shook his head. "I know. I know. I try to be there for you, Cupcake. I do. I just…" Joe sighed and looked out the back window, "I'm sorry I haven't been there for you."

"Are you really, Joe? That sounds like a bunch of shit. You, me, us. I mean we don't wor…"

Joe squeezed a little too hard on her hand and turned to face her. "Steph."

"What?"

"This isn't going to work." She stared at him with a hard look.

"Nnnnno. No. _You_ are not doing this to me." Stephanie started to feel a lump growing in her chest working its way up to her throat. "You cheated on me, Joe. No, you are cheating on me. And she's still up in your bed! You don't have a fucking care in the world about us, or me." Stephanie's resolve began to waver.

"There is no us." Joe said.

As if a storm blew across, her eyes turned into a tempest and began to swell with moisture. "How dare you. I did _not_ come here to be dumped by you. You got your fucking hand caught in the fucking cookie jar you bastard. I don't deserve this. You are not taking my job, I'm here to dump your ass. You think that because you get the words out first, that, that…" Stephanie stood and walked towards the TV, pacing.

"It can't work for us, Stephanie." Joe soothed shaking his head. "I can't. You know how much I love you…"

"Buuuull shit!" Stephanie was pointing at him with a stern finger. "Don't throw out the "l" word thinking it makes things better. If you loved me, we wouldn't be having this conversation." Stephanie could not believe what she was hearing. The lump was beginning to taste bitterer with each passing word. As her anger swelled, the tears started to well, threatening to fall but she blinked them back. "Even when we weren't together you still cared about me and didn't got jump in the sack with other women. This time, you jump in bed when we aren't even on a break! What made this time different?"

"Who's the one to talk! Call the fucking kettle black, Stephanie. So you feel this is my fault?"

"Damn straight!" Stephanie blurted out.

"You're the one who always jumps into Manoso's bed and goes into the back alley with him. I see the way he looks at you and the way you look at him. Do I need to continue?"

"Are you seriously playing the blame game? If you want to point the finger, point it back at yourself, Joe. This is all about Paige. She's the one upstairs in _your_ bed half naked."

"No, it isn't."

"Yes it is,"

"Stephanie, this is so much more. I can't do this anymore."

"I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of sending me away. I'm leaving, Joe. It truly is for good this time. No crawling back. No boys. Nothing. You've made your bed this time." Silence fell upon them. Joe closed his eyes and let out a defeated sigh. The ring of his cell phone pierced the silence. Joe walked over to the kitchen and picked up the phone. "Morelli," He answered. "I'm listening. Yes. I understand. Yes." His broken conversation ended and he snapped his phone shut and replaced it on the counter.

Looking at the woman sitting on his couch, he lifted his arms and let out a sigh. "Duty calls." He said flatly.

Stephanie nodded, blankly looking at the front door. She sat paralyzed; numbness consuming her thoughts and movements. She did it. Joe ran upstairs; all he wanted to do was leave the house. Apparently, Paige had received the same call as she was sitting on the edge of the bed, dressed and ready to go. Joe jerked on a pair of jeans and threw a shirt over his head and motioned to the bedroom door.

"Just walk to the car, Paige." Paige nodded as she rose and walked pompously down the stairs, a smirk on her face. Not even giving a glance towards the living room, Paige walked out the door and seated herself into Morelli's SUV.

Not even two minutes passed when Joe came down the stairs. Stephanie stared him down as he grabbed his keys and phone off the counter. She closed her eyes and clenched her fists.

"I'll see ya around, Steph." Joe turned and walked to the front door. Stephanie heard it open then click close, followed by the familiar roar of his engine.

Feeling like a small child, she stared around the house suddenly aware of how unfamiliar everything appeared. She barely held it together in front of Joe. Now alone, a single tear containing all the agony, pain, anger, betrayal, and other emotions she'd dare not shed in front of Joe rolled down her cheek.

Silently, she stood, padding deftly to the entry. With her hand on the doorknob, she let out a dry sob gently tugging the door. Standing on the porch in the budding sunrise, she walked down the steps, away from Aunt Rose's house.

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**I hope I did the chapter justice and you all enjoyed. Let me know what you think!**


	27. Chapter 27

*****Gee whiz! Thanks everyone for the wonderful feedback on the last chapter! You guys are awesome and I love you all, it truly made my weekend! I am begging all of your pardons as my posts may not be as timely (well, maybe a little longer than a week). I started grad school (yay me!) and I'm super excited, but a little overwhelmed. However, I did manage to get the last two chapters up within the week because you all have been so nice to me! Enjoy!!*****

Previously...

_Feeling like a small child, she stared around the house suddenly aware of how unfamiliar everything appeared. She barely held it together in front of Joe. Now alone, a single tear containing all the agony, pain, anger, betrayal, and other emotions she'd dare not shed in front of Joe rolled down her cheek._

_Silently, she stood, padding deftly to the entry. With her hand on the doorknob, she let out a dry sob gently tugging the door. Standing on the porch in the budding sunrise, she walked down the steps, away from Aunt Rose's house._

* * *

Stephanie stood in front of her black car staring at the contents in her hands: keys, purse. Making an executive decision, she opened her purse and was surprised to find a twenty-dollar bill and a five-dollar bill. She forced the money into her back pocket and opened the car door, flinging her purse on the passenger seat then beeping the car closed. Turning around, she finally faced the house she had just left. Contemplating burning the house to the ground, the thought was fleeting and she merely gave the house the finger as she proceeded down the sidewalk. The fluttering of drapes in neighboring houses indicated Stephanie's conversation was not isolated and the news was already traveling. Fast. She rolled her eyes mentally ignored the fact that countless messages would be waiting for her on her cell phone.

Most people believe there is only one walk of shame. However, there are two. The first is the most common one where you wake up the morning after a one-night stand and everyone knows why you are wearing the same clothes from the day before. The second is the neighborhood walk of shame. Slightly different, this is where you walk down the street and everyone knows what you just did, regardless of the deed. This walk was almost the equivalent of the second walk of shame; with one exception. Stephanie walked with her head held high and made sure she radiated confidence, determined to show all that she had no shame being rid of Joseph Morelli and his pogo stick penis.

"Joe be damned. He can fuck anyone he wants." Stephanie said as she saluted an elderly woman peering through her mini blinds. Stephanie walked a short distance to an area park and chose a vacant bench to befriend. Staring longingly at the partially dark sky, she closed her eyes and smelled the crisp air. Opening her eyes, she stared at the horizon where splashes of orange and red dissolved any remaining darkness. It was the first time in, well, Stephanie couldn't remember any time she had seen a sunrise, and as she watched the morning sky welcome a new day, a feeling of assuredness consumed her.

Sufficiently satisfied and relatively recouped from her ordeal with Morelli, Stephanie made the walk to get some sugar loving from one _Tasty Pastry_.

000000

"Umph!" With a hard 'slap,' Ram hit the mat. Staring at the wall in front of him, he tried to crawl fruitlessly toward the door. Ranger grabbed his leg and flipped him onto his back. Ram rolled onto his side and put his hand up. "I'm good, man. You've thrown me around for over an hour." Ram looked at the clock on the far wall, "Actually, it's been longer."

"It's only been 77 minutes." Ranger stood over Ram; his light gray tank top darkened charcoal from sweat.

"I know! And it is still not even time for normal people to wake up!" Ram was exhausted. Nearly every ten seconds Ranger was hurling him to the mat with full force. Trying to do the math in his throbbing head, he figured the number of times he impacted the ground was a really big number. Once, he managed to sweep Ranger to the ground, and that was one time too many in Ranger's book.

Ranger extended his hand and Ram accepted. "Five at 0600."

"Oh?" Ram was demotivated that this was earlier than his normal report time.

"You'll be alleviating Santos from monitor duty."

Ram hung his head and walked towards the elevator. Screw the stairs this morning. Ranger grabbed a carefully folded white towel from a wall rack, courtesy of Ella, and wiped the sweat from his head and neck following Ram into the elevator. Stepping off on four, Ram nearly tripped off the elevator. The doors closed and Ranger whispered, "Pansy," as the elevator stopped and he stepped out into his apartment.

After a very quick shower, Ranger was dressed in his usual black and riding the elevator down to five. The control room had minimal activity. With only Lester, Bobby, and Zero, it was relatively quiet.

"Hey, Boss." Bobby said as he walked by with a bagel.

Ranger stood behind Lester glancing at the monitors.

"Yeup, I'm still here, and I'm still not sleeping." Lester said smugly. He swiveled his chair around and faced Ranger.

"Report."

"Well, a whole lot of nothing. No break-ins, no break-outs, no alarms, no codes, no visitors. A pretty boring night." Lester continued to eye Ranger who was staring past him. "In fact, I didn't even take a bathroom break. I was tempted to piss in this empty water bottle," Lester held up a plastic bottle and set it back on the desk, "but figured I'm a trained man. I can hold it."

"You're sure there was nothing?" Ranger asked.

"Nothing, Boss."

"No activity?"

Lester furrowed his brow. "None. I've been on the monitors all night, Rangem…" Lester trailed off.

Ranger focused a deadly glare on Lester. "Yes?"

"Well, there was one phone call. But it wasn't important."

"Who?"

Lester cleared his throat and began to tap his foot. "Uh, B…Bombshell." Ranger continued to stare at Lester boring into his eyes, his resolve slipping. "Nothing happened, Man. It was a few hours ago."

"Tell me this, Santos, and I will personally alleviate you from monitor duty: If nothing happened all night, then why is there a car missing from the garage?"

Lester's eyes widened and he spun around and punched a few keys bringing up the garage cams. "Ssssshi…that…" Lester snapped his head up to a very visibly pissed off Ranger. "I swear man, she was in bed. It was, uh, at uh, four! Just before four this morning."

"And you are sure of this because?"

"She told me! She called down and said she just woke up and that…Oh, fuck!" Lester's fingers flew over the keyboard as Ranger stood nearby radiating fury, his eyes black. "Shit." Lester whispered.

"Santos,"

"This is your fault, man! I told you last night, I even warned you that…"

"Where is she?"

Lester was silent as he leaned back in his chair and shook his head, rubbing his face.

"Now!"

"She's at the cop's place." Lester hit a button and the BMW's tracker showed up on the big screen.

"And the other trackers?"

"Same."

"Fuck." Ranger rarely lost his cool, and that was practically equivalent to smashing a computer screen. Ranger walked to the elevator and smacked the down button, the doors opened immediately. "Don't move until I get back."

"Hey! You knew, Ranger! I told you, I fuckin' warned you! Don't blame her."

"I'm not. I'm blaming you." Ranger said icily as he pressed the button for the garage. Lester felt himself pale. "I told you to keep an eye on her." The doors closed and Ranger disappeared behind the stainless steel doors.

"Shit!" Lester threw the empty plastic bottle at the desk and it bounced back and the cap hit him square on the bridge of the nose. "Fuck! Ow!" Lester's eyes began to water and his nose started to run. Bobby sauntered over and handed him a napkin.

"No need to cry, Santos." Bobby gave him a grin and was rewarded with a punch in the ribs.

"Go to hell, Brown."

"You sure pissed off the boss." Bobby sat on the edge of the desk not caring to contain his glee.

"No, shit. Look." Lester pointed to the screen just in time to see a black Turbo leave smoke and rubber marks at the gate.

"Damn."

000000

"Incompetent people." Ranger murmured as he flew threw Trenton's streets. Not caring about traffic laws, Ranger pretended he was an ambulance and gave himself the right of way all the way to Slater Street. The Turbo slowed down, and the engine whirled back to normal. He pulled up behind the X6 and threw on the parking brake, the Turbo patiently idling. Ranger eased out of the Turbo and quickly arrived at the driver door. Pulling the spare key out of his pocket, he opened the X6 and immediately felt his blood boil. Her purse and all its contents were on the passenger seat. No Stephanie.

Ranger stuck his hand in her purse and found her cell and the trackers. "Shit." He whipped around and faced Morelli's house. He reached into his pocket and pressed a button that killed the engine of the Turbo as he ran to the front and banged on the door, receiving no response but a few barks. Nothing looked out of place, so Ranger reached out and tried the doorknob. It turned and the door swung open. Ranger ran into the house and called for Stephanie surveying each room he passed. Taking a calming breath, Ranger pulled out his phone and hit the number one harder than necessary.

"Santos,"

"Run the trackers again." Ranger said as quietly and controlled as possible.

"Boss?"

"Now." Ranger could hear clicking as Lester performed his task.

"Um, everything says she's in her car at Morelli's."

"Obviously they are wrong."

"Come again?"

"Get a team together double time to search for her."

"Rangeman, maybe she wanted some time by herself. Obviously she found out what you already knew. That would fuck anyone up! Give Bomber a break for shitssake."

Ranger was silent as he stared at a wagging Bob who was licking his non-phone hand. "Stand by twenty minutes. You better pray I find her."

Lester tried to say something but heard the phone disconnect. "Shit."

"Yikes! Sucks to be you man. I hear they have some openings at Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. You might want to look into that." Bobby gave Lester a huge grin.

"Fuck you, Brown! Don't you have work to do?"

"Nah, consider me part of the twenty minute team."

000000

With a box of a dozen Boston crèmes, a pocket full of napkins, and an extra large black coffee, Stephanie left Tasty Pastry and walked the side streets back to the park. The walk was refreshing and she inhaled the crisp autumn air as she set the box next to her on the bench. Double fisting the donuts, she tag teamed the first two. Sipping the coffee as a chaser, she cringed at her decision to go straight black coffee. Sadness overwhelmed her as her stare caught a large tree off to the side. The tree's scarred surface stood as a symbol of couples, lovers, and friends who scratched their initials into the bark as homage of their companionship.

Stephanie grabbed another donut from the box and pushed herself off the bench making her way across the path to admire the tree. Circling around its worn surface, she smiled as she found what she was looking for: a star encased by a square. Tracing the "SP" with her finger, she sighed as she fingered the "M" of the other set. Engrossed in her thoughts and donut she was oblivious to everything else around her.

Ranger said two words into his phone and walked stealthily into the park. When he arrived at the bakery, the kind lady behind the counter confirmed that Stephanie had been in a short while earlier and she didn't have a car. Driving the streets slowly he noticed an abandoned Tasty Pastry box on a park bench and knew Steph was near. As he entered the park, he froze when he saw her squatting in front of a tree with a donut in hand, fingering its trunk. Against his feelings of wanting to walk up to her and demand why she sneaked out and left everything in her car, he sat on the bench next to the donuts and observed.

Stephanie knew that Ranger was near. She could feel it. She was expecting his presence at any moment, for him to come up behind her, say "Babe," and then get "Ranger upset" about giving Lester the slip. He never came. Brushing off her pants and deciding another donut was in order, Stephanie turned around and stopped as she saw Ranger sitting on the bench next to her box and coffee, donut in hand.

She sat wordlessly on the other side of the box and stared at the tree for a long while, not wanting to start the conversation.

"Show me." Stephanie turned and gave Ranger a look of surprise. He stood in front of her and extended a mocha colored hand. "Show me."

"Wait a sec. First, you have a donut in your hand. What's with that, Ranger?" Ranger looked at his other hand and shrugged. Stephanie shook her head and led him to the tree. "There. You see that star and square? That's it."

Ranger knelt down and looked at the symbol raising an eyebrow. "MM?"

"Well, yeah, what else would it be?" Stephanie stated this like it was common knowledge. "I didn't want to use my middle initial, so Mary Lou decided to just use her first and last too." Ranger stood and shook his head.

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way."

Stephanie held Ranger's gaze, clenching her jaw. "You knew." She said as a statement, not a question.

Ranger gave a single nod.

"And you didn't say anything."

Ranger said nothing to this. Stephanie turned to storm away only to have her progress halted by a strong arm around her waist as he turned her around. "Babe,"

"No! Ranger, you knew! You knew and you didn't say anything! I came out here and had to find out for myself in the middle of the night!" Stephanie thought she could see fumes coming out her ears.

"Ssshhhh. Babe, would you have believed me?" Ranger was extremely calm.

"Yes! Well, uh, ummm…" Stephanie sighed and resisted struggling, melting into his chest shaking her head, a tear leaking out. "I…I, I don't know."

"Babe, you would have wanted to believe, but you still would have come here to find out for yourself. I'm sorry you had to find out this way."

Stephanie nodded and gave Ranger a hug. "I, I'm sorry. I'm glad you're here. Thanks." Stephanie took a long whiff of Bulgari before releasing from Ranger and walked back to retrieve the donut box and coffee. She smiled at Ranger and began walking down the sidewalk.

"Where are you going?" Ranger asked.

"Back to my car. It's awfully early. I don't have to be into work for a few more hours so I thought I would go back to bed."

"You're not walking."

"But I walked here."

"Babe, you gave me…I was getting ready to send a team out for you."

"Geez, Ranger! I just wanted some donuts." Ranger didn't budge, so Stephanie sighed. "Alright, you can give me a lift." She walked towards the direction of the Turbo. "Actually, no."

Ranger gave her a single raised eyebrow.

"I'll go with you under one condition." Stephanie took a few steps back from Ranger, knowing full well she couldn't outrun him, but she wouldn't go without a fight.

Ranger continued to stare.

"You can't punish Lester for what happened this morning."

"I may consider it."

"Not at all."

Ranger gave her an assessing look, "We'll see."

Stephanie shrugged, "Good enough. Let's go, I'm exhausted."

000000

Tank's fingers moved effortlessly over the keyboard as he began running an internal personnel check on RangeMan's employees. By doing it earlier in the morning, the probability of people needed his assistance was low. As a security feature and safety precaution, the window of time allowed for accessing internal records was incredibly small, and if the computer is left without activity for more than 45 seconds, the system locks the user out. Not that this would be a problem for Tank, it's just a shitty process to go through every few minutes. With all the passwords and firewalls and identification procedures, it takes eight minutes six seconds to reenter the system if you exhaust all the time allowances for each screen. If you do it efficiently and know all the information, it takes eight minutes and three seconds. Satisfied with all the information he evaluated he made few notes and sealed the envelope placing it on Ranger's desk.

Near 8:30, Stephanie stirred in her bed. It wasn't a good night's sleep, but at least she got a nap. She rolled over and looked at her phone: 11 missed calls and eight messages. The shower was calling her name so she shrugged off checking her messages and hopped out of bed. Showering and dressing in standard RangeMan black, Stephanie grabbed the donut box from her counter, expecting to eat the remaining six for second breakfast, and headed down to the control room.

"Whoa! What are you still doing here?" She asked Lester as she approached the center of the control room.

"Geez, Beautiful, I'm on monitor duty, what's it look like?"

"But it's nine o'clock. You've been here since yesterday morning working."

Lester shrugged, "Boss' orders."

Stephanie glared at Ranger's door and walked over to Lester. "Here." She took out three donuts and stacked them in front of Lester. "These always help pass time for me."

"Thanks, Steph." Lester took one and popped in his mouth like a tic-tac. "Hey, Steph," Stephanie looked back over her shoulder, "At least I didn't get 4 am mats for a month." He winked at her and proceeded to eat his second donut.

"Les?"

"Mmm?" He grunted through a donut.

"I'm sorry I gave you the slip. It's just,"

"Hey, I would do it all over again and sit at these monitors all day for you." Lester didn't give her a chance to justify. He knew, and he understood. Steph smiled again and waved off to her desk.

The desk was partially organized from the day before. Stephanie pulled some files out of a box and looked at the remains from the day before. She grinned as she picked up a sheet with a big heart and a capitol 'L' in the middle. True to his word, she scanned the report Lester had printed out regarding Carl. Setting it to the side, she began working with newfound drive. Stephanie was always amazed at RangeMan's searching capabilities and the access she was granted as she continued her search for information on her assignment from Ranger. Around noon Vince stopped by Stephanie's desk to inquire about her searches.

"Well, I've been doing standard stuff on my skips. I was waiting for Lester to finish with," Stephanie looked around and lowered her voice, "_his_ search so he could show how to do the high level stuff."

Vince smiled and sat on the corner of her desk, "Why don't you break for lunch and then I'll show you how to really get the good stuff for you ATF search?"

"Really? Sounds great!" Stephanie shoveled her papers around and followed Vince to the break room for some chicken salad sandwiches. Glancing towards the center of the room, she noticed Lester had been replaced by Ram.

Lunchtime was enjoyable as other Rangemen came into the eating area, the hot topic still swimming around Ranger's arrest. After some good jokes and laughs at the image of Ranger in the back of a police car, Bobby placed a hand on Steph's arm and asked if she was okay. Stephanie gave a sheepish smile to him and the guys sitting around the table.

"Sorry to scare everyone."

"Hey, I was hoping to get out of working to find you!" Bobby said laughing.

"Well, I think the fire department would have found me first because I thought about burning Joe's house to the ground." Stephanie had just finished her bottle of water when a thought struck her so suddenly she crushed the bottle around the middle.

"Oh," She squeaked. Vince, Bobby, and Zero all gave her a quizzical look. "Sorry, I just remembered something. Excuse me." Stephanie scooted out of her chair and made her way quickly to Ranger's office. The door was open so she stuck her head in.

"Babe?"

"Ranger, you remember yesterday when we went to Garvin's house?"

"Is this about me getting arrested?" Ranger gave her a blank look.

"No! But you can come join us in the lunch room to discuss it with us."

"Garvin's house?"

"Oh yeah! Do you remember the door?"

"The door?"

"Well, Lula and I had gone to Garvin's house the day before and he wasn't home, but it looked like the door had been burned. Or, I mean, it had a charred black look to the bottom and up the middle."

Ranger furrowed his brow. '_Damn, I should recognize those things. Why can't I remember a burned door?'_ Ranger continued to ponder in silence. "No, The door wasn't black."

"Oh. But…Ranger, I'm positive the door was black on the bottom the day before you and I went to Garvin's house."

Ranger looked at his watch. "I have a meeting in an hour. Grab Zero and have him take his chem kit to Garvin Tucker's house. Look for yourself. If the door is not black, have him run a swab and analysis. Fill him in on the situation and he'll know what to do."

"Zero?"

"He's got a degree from MIT in chemistry and further specialized in chemical weaponry." Stephanie nodded her head and made mental notes. "Vince is going to run you through the system to dig into ATF?"

"Yes, he said he would do that after lunch, but it can wait until later in the week. I'm still running the skips."

"I got word that Eddie's funeral will be held on Friday."

"Oh? Um, well, I'm going to stop off and see Carl today too. I figured it would be the best thing to do since Lester went through all the trouble for me to get the information." Stephanie swore she saw something flash across Ranger's eyes, but couldn't quite place it. She turned playfully out of his office and went to find Zero.

Stephanie found Zero and briefly told him what Ranger said and that he would be filled in on the rest while they were en route. Zero readily agreed and was excited to play scientist again. Stephanie shook her head not understanding what it was with these men and their toys. She apologized to Vince and he waved it off as no big deal. Within ten minutes, Stephanie and Zero were driving in his black Dodge Charger. There were some serious ponies under the hood and Stephanie knew it didn't come standard. Stephanie quickly filled Zero in and he shook his head a lot and occasionally spouted off phrases and things like "carbon analysis" and "ionization" making her eyes glaze over.

They stopped in front of the house and Zero turned off the engine. He looked at the house and back at Stephanie.

"This is the house?" Zero asked. Stephanie nodded and shook her head at the same time.

"Zero, I don't understand. It wasn't like that earlier this week."

Zero stepped out of the car and retrieved a large bag from the back seat. "Don't worry about it, let's go take a look."

They walked together to the door. Zero snapped on some purple latex gloves and handed Stephanie a pair. She held them out like they were poisonous just staring at them.

"What? They don't fit?" Zero looked up from unzipping his bag.

"They're not black."

"Black is only for special occasions."

'_Oh, boy!'_ Stephanie stretched them over her hands as Zero gave her a grin.

Zero stood and assessed, no, it looked like he was caressing the house as he ran his hands up and down the door and doorframe. He pulled a long Q-tip looking thing from his case and ran it along the bottom of the doorframe. From the open kit he flipped a flap and revealed several small vials filled with liquid and removed one, placing the Q-tip in stirring it around. The liquid turned a burnt orange color.

"Wow! What's that mean?" Stephanie asked as the liquid magically turned color.

"Nothing."

Stephanie gave a dejected sigh and watched him repeat the process two more times with the same results. Either orange or clear. Zero looked at the bottles then the door figuring out what to do next. Zero leaned back on his heels and took out another Q-tip and stuck it into the top joint of the frame. He pulled out another vial with clear liquid and repeated the process. They watched the liquid quickly turn dark blue.

Zero sucked in air, "Holy shit, Steph."

Stephanie looked from Zero's hand to Zero's face with raised eyebrows shaking her head.

"You were right. Grab some swabs and run them around the door. We need to get back to RangeMan."

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**Thanks all for reading! Send a little review my way! **


	28. Chapter 28

*****Sorry for the delay. I really tried to get this one up on Friday but I had far too many music commitments. However, as a reward, I have included more juicy stuff. I'm excited for the next few chapters! **

**And thank so much to all of you who have been so fabulous about sending reviews and support my way! It gets me in the spirit of writing! Language warning for this chapter.*****

Previously....

_Zero sucked in air, "Holy shit, Steph."_

_Stephanie looked from Zero's hand to Zero's face with raised eyebrows shaking her head._

_"You were right. Grab some swabs and run them around the door. We need to get back to RangeMan."_

* * *

Paige sat in a chair across from Chief Larson discussing the current movement of the case and any progress towards closure. Her phone went off and she furrowed her brow. She silenced the phone, sending the call to voicemail, continuing her discussion.

Joe sat at his desk waiting for Paige to return. He was still brewing over his encounter with Stephanie this morning. '_Who does she think she is, barging in like that this morning?' _His phone ringing pulled his thoughts back to the present.

"Morelli. Yes? Really? Christ. What is it with these people? No, I'll take care of it, thanks." Joe snapped his phone shut and glanced up at the clock. Paige should be down any minute, her meeting wasn't suppose to go past one. Joe grabbed his jacket and walked towards the stairs, rounding the corner, he bumped into Paige. She grabbed his waist for support and gave him a kiss.

"Where are you going with that fine ass?" She smiled up at him.

"Tucker crime scene." He leaned in and gave her a kiss then slipped his hand into hers and led her up the stairs.

"Garvin Tucker?"

"Yeup,"

"Why?"

"Police got a call from a passerby that a man and woman showed up at Garvin Tucker's house over an hour ago and were doing "funny stuff."" He used quotes as he pushed the door open to the police parking lot.

"Okay, what kind of funny stuff? I mean, did this person mention anything else?" Paige walked around to the passenger side and climbed into Joe's SUV.

"No, just that they drove a sleek Dodge Charger in the color of black, and they were both dressed in black."

Paige shook her red hair and scoffed. "Seriously! Don't they have anything better to do than sneak around? Do you think it was Manoso?"

"No, he doesn't drive a black Charger, but I have a pretty damned good idea who the woman was." Joe turned the roads to Garvin's house and they both walked up the sidewalk to the crime scene. The yellow crime tape didn't look disturbed and the door was still locked, though this meant nothing with RangeMan involved. They rubbed the door and walked around the house and even went inside again to see if anything looked suspicious.

"I don't see anything, Joe." Paige said after twenty minutes.

"Yeah, I'll call over and see what they're doing and what evidence they collected. What a waste of time."

Paige stopped en route to the car and grabbed Joe's hand. "Hey," Joe turned around and felt a soft hand caress his face. "Are you okay?"

Joe felt himself relax and nodded his head.

"Do you want to talk about it, or anything else?" Paige's voice was laden with concern.

"No. It's better this way, Paige. I don't, I mean, it actually doesn't sting this time."

Paige gave him a nod of assurance and gave him a soft kiss.

"Let's go finish that paperwork from this morning. Maybe then we can start…other things?" Joe said. Paige lifted an eyebrow and Joe gave her a lust filled grin as he dragged her off to the car.

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"Wait, Zero! We need to stop by the hospital." Stephanie placed a hand on Zero's shoulder as they passed a blue "H" sign. "I promised myself I would, I'll be super quick."

Zero understood why and turned towards St. Francis. Stephanie hopped out and ran to the admitting desk. The woman informed her that Officer Costanza was currently on limited visiting hours and under constant police surveillance. Possibly next week he would be moved out of ICU. Stephanie thanked the woman and ran back to Zero.

"Everything okay?" He asked.

"Carl's been in ICU all week. They hope to move him next week, so my visit was very short." Stephanie slumped into the seat and Zero headed for RangeMan.

Apparently, RangeMan has its own sophisticated chemical laboratory that puts pharmaceutical companies and forensics departments to shame. Stephanie hadn't a clue this even existed. Actually, she still wasn't quite sure where it was located, but when Stephanie and Zero arrived at RangeMan, Zero went down several floors while she went up five. Stephanie proceeded to her desk and plopped down to finish her information on the skips. Ranger was still in his business meeting and the afternoon was mellow even for RangeMan. Stephanie pulled out her cell phone and crinkled her nose at the addition of missed calls and messages. Taking a deep breath, she pressed the voicemail icon and listened to the first message.

"Stephanie, this is your mother. What's this about you and Joseph? I heard…" Stephanie pressed the delete button.

"Stephanie, this is your mother again. Mabel told me…"

"Stephanie, this is…"

"Stepha…"

Stephanie just kept pressing the delete button without even listening to her mother's rants. She did listen to one from Lula who was wondering if she was going to be getting it on with Batman. Resting back into her chair, her phone rang and buzzed in her hand startling her. She looked at the number and cringed. Biting her cheek, she pressed ignore and smiled. Turning to her computer, she brought up the screen with the information on Donald Creto. The phone at her desk rang and she absentmindedly picked up the receiver as she read a paper clipping.

"Yes?"

"Stephanie, it's Joe."

Stephanie snapped to attention and rolled her eyes. "What?"

"I got a call from a source saying there was some activity this afternoon in front of Garvin Tucker's house."

"Really?" Stephanie picked at her fingernails disinterested.

"Yeah, a black Dodge Charger and a man and woman were in front of the house."

"Huh."

"You wouldn't know anything about that would you?"

"Nope." Stephanie could barely contain her glee at her one worded answered. '_Holy hell, I bet this is how Batman feels with his one word answers._'

"Cupcake, what were you doing at the house?"

"Is this a question for information about the case?" Stephanie asked a smile creeping across her lips. She didn't hear Joe say anything, but she could hear him sigh. "Since you are asking a question about the case, I'll have to send your inquiry through Ranger. I'll transfer you now." Stephanie pressed a button on the phone and sent Joe to Ranger's voicemail.

"Ha, ha!" Stephanie burst out laughing and Tank popped his head into her workspace.

"You okay, Steph?" Tank said.

"Oh, yeah, I just sent Joe over to Ranger's voicemail."

"I'm sure that went well. Ranger mentioned you wanted to get into the good stuff to run your ATF search." Stephanie nodded. "Do you have time?"

"Now? Of course!" Stephanie scooted over to no avail as Tank took up most of her small desk space. For the next few hours Tank set up her security level and showed her how to access the inner realms of RangeMan searching. As they were going through the process again, Ranger stepped into Stephanie's cubicle. Stephanie reached back and scratched the back of her neck and kept nodding. He smiled that they hadn't acknowledged his presence. They spoke in hushed voices and were crowded around the screen. Ranger placed a hand on both of their shoulders. Stephanie and Tank both turned their heads like they had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar; Stephanie let out a yelp.

"Hey, man, what's with that?" Tank shrugged off Ranger's hand.

"Aware of your surroundings, Tank?" Ranger asked. Stephanie folded her arms and gave him a death stare. "Babe, about a message I received from Morelli?"

Stephanie's death glare turned to a 'you just gave me birthday cake' smile and she nodded. "Oh?"

"Babe, he wasn't happy. I called him back and let him know we have no information at this time. With that, I'd like for you two to follow me to Conference Room C."

Tank nodded and stood. "We were just finishing anyway." They followed Ranger into the conference room where the other "secret society" (as Stephanie dubbed them) RangeMen were waiting. An air of seriousness buzzed around and everyone watched the three newcomers walk into the plush room. The three took their seats and Zero nodded, immediately bringing up a media projection.

"Stephanie and I went to Mr. Tucker's this afternoon and retrieved samples from the front door and frame. I ran some preliminary results and everything on the door came back negative. However," he pressed a button and a new picture was on the screen, "after field testing a swab from the doorframe, we collected additional samples and I ran further tests at RangeMan's lab. The tests confirmed my original field test."

"Which are what?" Vince asked.

"Positive identification for white phosphorus."

Several men blew air out and a few rubbed their face.

"Sweet mother. WP? So what does this mean, Z?" Cal asked

"It means that whoever killed Garvin didn't want this to be found. Phosphorus is incredibly difficult to detect in the first place and by switching out the burned door, it removed most of the traces."

"What type of device was used?" Ranger asked.

"I'm not sure, but I'm guessing it was military. This type of chemical shit isn't really readily available to the public. Don't get me wrong, you could still get your hands on it, just not very easily."

"Your best guess."

"Smoke screen. Probably trying to lure out Mr. Tucker. Since it is highly flammable, it was meant as a distraction, not to burn the house down." Zero sat down in a chair.

"Trenton RangeMan is clean. However, Tank found someone trying to hack into our system to pull information on me. What is the progress?"

"I'm digging deep on Walker and got nothing. I was hoping there was some connection to her and the FBI, but I got shit." Bobby said shaking his head. "I'll search a few more FBI things, but I'm afraid Miami looks clean."

"With the exception of your brother, RangeMan is clean too. I haven't collaborated with Steph yet." Lester piped in.

"And?" Ranger gave Lester a serious stare.

"You already know about Anthony, there's no sense in beating a dead horse, you already did that." Ranger gave a nod as Lester turned his hands up.

"Cal? How's Miami PD looking?"

"Messy. I'm actually pairing with Vince on his Trenton search."

"Explain." Ranger turned his attention to Vince.

"Something's not right, Boss. It's…It's almost as if the paper trail is fucked up, Sir. We still need do a lot of searching, but…" Vince stopped and shook his head, "we're discovering conflicting dates."

"Understood. I'll be out the rest of the day, but keep me posted. Steph, Lester, get on the ATF. I want it started before evening. And Tank, let me know if you want me to assist with Trenton FBI. I'm going to be looking into Trenton's ATF division."

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement and understood the unspoken urgency.

Ranger steepled his fingers and looked at the where Zero's last slide was still on the wall."It is going to start now. Vince, Cal, I want your information about Trenton PD and Walker. Not the conflicting dates, I want the information Miami sent to Trenton. I'm going to send it over to Larson and I'll be sure to CC Morelli and Walker. Let's start the waves."

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"What the hell is his?" Paige stormed into Larson's office with a piece of paper crumpled in her hand. "Does RangeMan think that sending my information to the department is going to break this case? Give me a break!"

Larson held up a hand and Paige sat down. "It is just preliminary, Walker. I can understand RangeMan's suspicions given your history with this case."

Paige flipped her hair sassily and shook her head. "This is bullshit, Chief!"

"This is standard procedure."

"Did you ask them to look into me?" The chief shook his head and Paige locked her green eyes onto his tired gray ones. "Then why aren't we receiving anything pertinent to this case?"

"They have sent information we requested. I wouldn't get too worked up about it, Detective. Go finish this morning's file and maybe consider taking the rest of the afternoon off."

Paige nodded and stood.

"I got word that Slater will be back on Friday. Where you aware of this, Walker?"

Again Paige nodded.

"Good. When he arrives, you're going to be visiting with the coroner. I want you to thoroughly check the ME reports on the last few homicides." With nothing further, she sulked out of the office to the stairwell, the crumpled paper still in hand. As the fire door clicked closed behind her, she smoothed the paper and again read through the dates of her employment history. "Fuck." Paige closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall. "I fucking hate RangeMan." She pulled another paper from her pocket with TPD's header and compared it to the facsimile from RangeMan. Satisfied, Paige proceeded down the stairs and walked to the desk she shared with Joe. She grabbed her jacket and picked up a file.

"Going somewhere?" Joe looked up from his desk.

"Your place."

"Oh?" Joe raised an eyebrow and closed the file he was writing in. "Still pissed off about Manoso?"

"You could say that." Paige said folding her arm across.

"So they were pulling up your record, it's nothing we don't already have on file, Paige."

Paige let out a laugh through her nose. "I suppose, but I just feel violated, like they're snooping on me. You know, prodding around without my consent type of thing?"

"I guess, happens all the time, especially around here. What do you say we pick up some sandwiches and call it a day? We'll go back home, kick it around all night, maybe become engrossed in other activities…what do you say?"

Paige smiled and sighed. "Sounds like a good idea. Let's blow this joint and come back tomorrow in better spirits. We've got a hot date with some reports tomorrow."

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Stephanie and Lester sat in Conference Room F which was a spectacularly oversized office that allowed employees to work together on multiple computers in private. Barely breaking for dinner, they were hard at work pulling information. Lester was running through the ATF database while Stephanie had up a similar site and was taking notes. A knock on the door pulled their heads up over the monitors.

"Hey, Vince, come in." Stephanie motioned him in and he pulled a chair up next to her. "You have something useful?"

"I think so, Steph. Santos, listen up. You found anything with your skips?" Vince asked.

"Well, aside from the fact that they were all bonded by Vinnie, no." Stephanie said.

"Yeah, I was going to run them through the ATF site for kicks and laughs." Lester added. "What do you have, Vince?"

"I think there is a deeper connection with all of Steph's skips. I went back to the first victim."

"Donald?"

"No, Before that. Glametta, the one that was floating in the river."

"Oh? But he wasn't a skip."

"No he wasn't, but I've been pulling all the dead people in Trenton the last several weeks."

"That's gotta be quite the shit load." Lester said.

Vince nodded and continued, "Glametta is the only murder that has been linked to the SA case. What if the murderer wasn't sloppy with leaving the bullet for forensics, but rather, wanted to make a point."

"Meaning?" Stephanie looked confused.

"Meaning, since the cartel has moved up to Trenton, there are going to be followers and minions. What if your skips were all involved with this SA cartel and our main person is doing a house cleaning?"

Lester took in a loud breath through his nose and nodded his head. "I think you're on to something. Maybe our leader has decided to cut their losses and the leader is eliminating everyone that is associated with the cartel; you know, people that could give a positive ID. We'll look into it. Thanks, Vince."

Vince left and Stephanie turned her attention to Lester. "Let's run these guys through ATF and see what we can pull up." Stephanie looked at the clock on the wall and grimaced. "Geez, it's already tomorrow!"

"Alright, Beautiful, let's call it a night and work on this tomorrow. Friday morning's going to be shot with the funeral, and Ranger's going to Atlanta tomorrow, well, I mean today."

Stephanie held a finger to her lips. "I'm not liking where this is headed, Les, especially with Pinkie still out there. You heard anything on him lately?"

Lester shook his head.

"Hmm. Well, maybe he'll pop up in the next few days. I'll be glad when this is over." Stephanie stood and stretched. "See you tomorrow."

Stephanie trudged off to her apartment on four and walked in to the melodious sounds of Rex's wheel. She flipped the light on and paused at the sight of a small velvet box on her counter. Apprehensively, she looked around as she walked toward the counter. Any girl who knows anything knew that there was something expensive in the box. She reached for the box and held it in her hands, contemplating opening it. As she took a deep breath and mentally prepared to lift the lid, a mocha colored hand came around her and clasped her hands.

"Ranger!" She gasped. If he wasn't holding her hands, she would have grabbed her heart. "You startled me!"

"Sorry, Babe."

"Where were you hiding? You know what? Never mind." She looked down at their joined hands and looked up into his soft eyes. "What is this? I mean, I'm assuming it's from you."

He nodded. She wasn't sure if it was signaling her to open it or that it was from him or both, so she complied. The lid softly creaked open and Stephanie sucked in a gasp. "Oh, Ranger. Th…they're beautiful. But, I…I can't. It's too much." Stephanie stared at the sparkling brilliant cut diamond earrings set in platinum. No matter where she turned the box, the light bounced off their surface shooting prisms and sparkling everywhere.

"Babe, I put a lot of effort into getting those for you."

"But…but why? I mean, I…"

"Please, Babe."

"I…well…" Stephanie felt torn between ripping them out of the box right there or handing them back to Ranger.

"They're tasteful. I didn't go overboard. One carat total weight. That's it. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to get more, but I wanted you to have something you could wear all the time."

Stephanie still stared at him, stunned. Ranger brought his hand to her neck, "Please?"

Stephanie gulped, "Well, when you put it that way." Stephanie began to remove the earrings from the box and place them in her ears. She felt giddy and touched her lobes. "Thank you, Batman."

"I'll be back tomorrow night around 2300." Ranger placed a kiss on her head and left her room. Stephanie smiled at the closed door and skipped off to the bathroom. The diamonds were certainly sparkly and beautiful, she deserved them, right? She smiled into the mirror. Satisfied, she retired to her bedroom and collapsed onto her bed.

Up on seven, Ranger smiled to himself.

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The alarm beeped loudly and Stephanie groaned. The end of the week was rapidly approaching and it seemed that the case was starting to snowball out of control. Prepping for the day, she fed Rex a few Cheerios and decided to eat whatever Ella had out on five.

"Whoa! Aren't those lookin' good on you?" Lester gave Stephanie a big smile. "I hope you didn't get all dressed up for me, Beautiful!"

Stephanie felt herself blush and she immediately thumbed her earlobes.

"I'm just joshing with you, Steph. They are perfect on you."

"Thanks, Les. They're from Ranger."

"Who else would they be from? Besides, he had to spend most of the afternoon getting those things for you."

"Yesterday?"

"Yeup. He wasn't actually in a meeting all day and he also went out after the meeting." Lester grabbed her shoulders and steered her towards the break room.

"Mmmm, do you smell that? Holy cow! Look at all this food! Coffee cake and pastries. Is that real coffee?"

"Ella's gotta have her release somehow. We're not the only ones who enjoy some Ranger away time." Lester poured himself a cup of coffee and handed Stephanie a slice of coffeecake. "So, shall we begin?"

Stephanie grabbed a homemade blueberry scone, an éclair, another slice of coffee cake and a piece of lemon poppy seed pound cake. She nodded to Lester and they walked to Conference Room F were they worked all day plugging information into the ATF web site. Occasionally they collaborated with Bobby and Tank, but mostly they stuck to their task at hand. Off and on they took short breaks to see what new creations Ella brought to the break room. After dinner, they still felt unaccomplished.

"Shit." Lester slapped his hand on the desk startling Stephanie. "This is going nowhere. I've thoroughly ran that Tucker guy and came up with nothing. We've wasted a whole fucking day on him."

Tank popped his head into the room and Lester motioned him in. "You're not going to believe this." Lester and Stephanie perked up. "Zero's been running information on the phosphorus and got a hit."

"You're shitting me?" Lester walked over to read the paper in Tank's hand.

"Look for yourself. He found it while running shipping records. There was a freightliner that stopped in Trenton on Sunday to make the drop off."

"Was it illegal." Stephanie asked.

"Not exactly. Everything was documented, but the cargo was not declared. The liner came from somewhere south and it is still traveling north. Trenton was a pit stop." Tank said.

Lester contemplated the information. "What about other cargo? Anything else inventoried during the dock here?"

Tank cleared his throat. "Not exactly."

"Not exactly?"

"Zero rounded up a dock mate that disembarked here and he told him that they had some "last minute cargo" that avoided inspection and documentation."

"Shit. SA's?" Lester asked.

Tank nodded.

"Does Ranger know?"

"Yes, and he already landed at Newark about twenty minutes ago. How's your search coming?"

Stephanie looked up and shook her head. "We've only ran one through and came up with nothing. Blew the whole day on Garvin. I think we'll run the rest tomorrow afternoon, after the funeral. It should go a lot faster since we finished the local stuff on them today, too." Stephanie gave a chagrined look and slight grimace.

"Sounds like a plan Steph. Why don't you call it a night? Tomorrow's going to be a very full day."

Stephanie nodded and excused herself.

Lester turned to Tank after Stephanie stepped into the elevator. "What the fuck is going on, Tank?"

Tank shook his head, "I don't know, Santos. I wasn't expecting Zero to come back with anything so soon on the WP. Because of his efficiency, we now have a solid link now between the SA's and our killer."

"Fuck, man. This is military grade shit. The phosphorus, the SA's."

"You think I don't know that? This person is good, Santos. Do you think it's Pinkie?"

Lester shook his head. "No, too sloppy. Unless he has some secret military background or training we don't know about. We still need to find him though. What do you think?"

"I think we need to find the connection with the bitch, double time."

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**Thoughts...yay/nay? I hope you all like the direction this is going. The more I think about it, the more I think Paige needs to get what's coming to her, but I'm torn! I don't know if my heart lies with her being good or being nasty. Thanks for reading!**


	29. Chapter 29

*****Your response to my last chapter was overwhelming and wonderful, thank you so much! I apologize for not getting this up on Monday, darn paper kicked my butt. Since turning it in though, I feel less stressed (for another three weeks) and was able to refine this for you! I'm excited about the developments in this chapter and I have to admit I'm getting pretty excited fro the next few chapters, I hope you don't hate me too much!**

**For the record: SA- Special Artillery. And WP- White phosphorus.**

**Also, please be warned of the use of strong language in this chapter. Ranger and Joe can't help it when they get around each other.*****

Previously....

_"You think I don't know that? This person is good, Santos. Do you think it's Pinkie?"_

_Lester shook his head. "No, too sloppy. Unless he has some secret military background or training we don't know about. We still need to find him though. What do you think?"_

_"I think we need to find the connection with the bitch, double time."_

* * *

The incessant pounding on the door stirred Joe from his slumber. He squinted at the clock and swore under his breath as the pounding continued. He looked down at the red hair sprawled across his chest and smoothed the hair off her porcelain face. Placing a kiss on Paige's temple, he grumbled as he pulled on a pair of pants and walked downstairs. The pounding got louder and he shouted he was coming as he pulled a t-shirt over his head and opened the door.

"Fuck, don't you ever sleep?" Joe said giving the man on his doorstep a scowl.

"Depends."

"I see. Single word answers at anytime of day. What the hell do you want? Do you know what time it is?" Joe shook his head to clear the cobwebs and motivate himself for the sight before him. A figure stepped into view behind Joe's shoulder at the bottom of the stairs. Paige was wearing a worn TPD shirt and panties. Her long milky legs carrying her into the entry.

"0500." Ranger cocked his head slightly and his face darkened at the sight of Paige. "Rough night?"

"That's none of your damn business, Manoso!" Joe sized up Ranger and crossed his muscular arms over his chest. Clanking from the kitchen drifted through the doorway followed by the sound of running water. "Now what the hell are you doing on my doorstep at five in the morning? As usual, you look like your dressed for a fucking funeral."

"I am." Joe's face blanched as realization sucker punched him in the gut. Ranger continued, "I see you're as sensitive as ever. You're on security detail with RangeMan for Eddie's burial motorcade. We're clearing the streets in thirty minutes to begin vehicle and barricade setup. Obviously you had…other _things_ on your mind."

"Why wasn't I notified?" Joe burst.

"You were."

"The hell I wasn't! If I was, you wouldn't be standing here." Joe's Italian temper was surfacing and he straightened in the doorframe.

"It was my understanding that messages were left for you yesterday informing you of the arrangements. If you hadn't," Ranger cleared his throat, "been fucking your_ partner_ all day, you would already be at your assigned post."

Joe's right fist swung for Ranger. In one fluid movement Ranger pulled him through the door as he deflected the fist, securing him to the ground with a knee to his back.

"Fuck! You're assaulting a police officer, you bastard!" Joe winced out as his arm was pulled back into an Aikido and the sharp pain of Ranger's knee intensified.

Ranger dropped his lips down to Joe's ear and kept his voice at a barely discernable whisper. "Listen up, Morelli, I'm not going to repeat myself. Don't fuck with me. You don't deserve to know shit from us. All you need to know is that I'm going to pin that bitch parading in your kitchen. And when I do, I'm going to bring you down with her. You fucked over Stephanie for the last time."

"What the hell, Manoso?" Paige yelled from the open door.

Ranger released Joe and shoved his face into the dew sodden grass, stepping on his back as he walked to the front step, standing inches from Paige. "Check your messages." Ranger turned and walked back to his Cayenne parked at the curb. The engine roared to life and the black car was gone.

"Joe, what was that?" Paige held out an arm to Joe as he stretched his shoulder and walked into the house.

"We got security detail with RangeMan for the procession to the cemetery."

"Oh, shit. I forgot." Paige handed him a mug and poured the coffee. "However, I suppose that memory loss could be a side effect of sex with you, hmmm?"

Joe smirked and clanked his cup to hers. "We've got ten minutes, honey."

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By ten to nine, Trenton's work commuters were over their aggression at being diverted and the sun was peeking through the thick clouded sky. RangeMan vehicles, police motorcycles, and red and white striped gates lined the street. Joe and Paige stood on the opposite side of an intersection glaring at Lester and Bobby.

"Hey, Brown." Lester and Bobby turned their attention to Hal who just stepped out of a black Escalade. Stephanie was sitting in the passenger seat, fiddling her hands nervously.

"What's up, Hal?" Bobby asked.

"I'm here to relieve you."

"Relieve me? It's only been four hours."

"Yeah, you're gonna take Bomber to the grave site."

"And?" Bobby gave Hal a raised eyebrow.

"I got word from the boss that uh…well," Hal scratched his bald head and shook it, "uh, you and Santos are not suppose to be on duty together for the next week."

"Ah, shit! Are you serious?" Lester threw his hands in the air.

Hal nodded.

"Ranger found out about us jacking with his voice monitor making him sound like Mickey Mouse over the radio this morning, huh?" Bobby asked.

Again Hal nodded a huge grin spreading. Lester and Bobby high-fived.

"Shit! We were just getting to the good part of shadow!" Lester exclaimed.

"Shadow?" Hal asked.

Lester and Bobby exchanged smirks. They did a handshake and chest bump and Bobby walked to the open driver door. He exchanged morning pleasantries with Stephanie and gave her a peck on the cheek, pulling away from the barricade.

"Why are they glaring at us?" Hal asked as Lester.

"Bossman paid them a little visit this morning." Lester said with a smirk.

"Man, I miss all the fun. So what's with shadow?"

"See the happy couple over there? We mimic all their stances and gestures and they get even more pissed off at us! It's really quite entertaining!" Lester proceeded to mock Joe and his folded arm closed stance. "You want to be Walker or Morelli?"

Hal thought for a moment then gave Lester a serious look, "I won't have to kiss you or anything will I? 'Cuz if that's the case, I'll be Morelli."

Lester quickly changed to Paige's stance and Hal Morelli's while they waited for the signal of the approaching motorcade. At 8:59 a voice spoke through their earpieces. They snapped into RangeMan mode and made a signal to Joe and Paige.

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For the melancholy atmosphere, the weather cooperated with a few clouds and a bright sun that warded off the chill that would have otherwise been present. Tears stained every face turned towards the casket elevated above the deep void. Children and their parents visiting graves of loved ones strolled peacefully across the grounds. Some sat silently on stone benches, others stopped briefly to observe the graveside service, bowing their heads knowingly and silently moving forward. Eddie "Big Dog" Rogers reached his final resting ground. A flag lay stoically on the lone amber colored coffin. Not married, his parents received the folded flag in memory of their son. A young man stood at the foot of the coffin and raised the cool metal to his mouth. The mourners of Big Dog bowed their heads and wiped their tears. As the clear and familiar bugler's melody of _Taps_ began, strangers and cemetery visitors alike stopped their activities and stood solemnly across the cemetery, paying homage to a man they did not know through a song they understood. The last notes hung on the trees and resonated through the air as the coffin lowered into the ground.

Stephanie appreciated the warm embrace of Ranger as he stood behind her, comforting her through the service. Funerals in general were emotional for her, but this memorial meant something more as she reflected on her fond memories involving Big Dog. They stood slightly off from the rest of the attendees so Ranger could keep surveillance during the service. Her soft sobs would be stifled by his broad chest and his thumbs wiped her tears. Nearly every officer of Trenton stood at attention honoring their friend and colleague. If one were to commit a crime, now would be the time. Ranger's eyes darted around the cemetery as updates came in from his men. Startled by the first gun shot, Stephanie jumped and instantly calmed as Ranger squeezed her shoulders as the 21-gun salute completed.

The patrons fanned out and proceeded to their respective vehicles. As the remaining people straggled behind, Stephanie focused on a stony face. Joe was walking with pissed off purpose in their direction. A rarity, he was dressed in his police uniform. Stephanie rubbed her eyes and dried her cheeks as she turned to face Ranger.

"Joe's coming this way." She said slightly agitated.

"It's okay, Babe. You're fine."

Stephanie ran her hands down her black stovepipe pants to tidy her appearance and pulled at the hem of her new black boat neck cashmere sweater. Knowing that Stephanie would be uncomfortable going to the funeral, Ranger gave her the sweater as a gift. Amidst her objections, he insisted she accept it to "dress up" her typical RangeMan uniform. Stephanie pulled her hair off her face and turned to face Joe.

"We're finished here, Manoso." He glared at both of them and made a point to linger on Ranger's arm draped over Stephanie's shoulder. Ranger didn't say anything; he only gave a curt nod. "I was…informed that I needed to "check out" with you once security detail was over." Joe shot Stephanie a look and scowled as the sun caught the brilliance of her earring.

"Your cooperation noted." Ranger dismissed him with a wave of his hand and Joe turned hastily walking to his SUV parked on the far end of the cemetery entrance.

"Ranger…I'll be just a minute." Stephanie placed a hand on Ranger's chest and pushed off after Joe. "Joe, wait!" She grabbed his shoulder and he stopped, catching her with both hands on her arms.

"What is it, Cupcake?" Joe continued to scowl.

"I don't understand why you're copping the attitude with me when you were the one screwing around. I thought we were friends, Joe?" Stephanie furrowed her brow.

"Well, things change. I see someone hasn't wasted time moving in on you."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Stephanie crossed her arms and gave her PMS look.

"You know what? Never mind, Steph. I have things to do. It's already been a shitty day, I'm not ready to talk about this with you. I'll see you around." Joe threw his hands up Italian style, "Nice earrings," and jogged to his car where Paige was waiting.

Stephanie thumbed her ears and smiled to herself. "Jealous bastard." Stephanie waved to Ranger and he quickly arrived at her side and steered her towards the Cayenne.

"Everything okay, Babe?" Ranger opened the door for her.

"Yes. In fact," Stephanie put her sunglasses on as she slid into the leather seat, "everything is perfect."

Ranger closed the door and stole a glance at the SUV that peeled out of the cemetery. "Ella's prepared a luncheon for RangeMan at noon."

Stephanie gave Ranger an incredulous look.

"It's going to be a long work day in the office, and we just buried a friend."

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"Good thing we had Ella's cooking for this afternoon huh, Beautiful?" Lester was flipping his pen through his fingers and chewing thoughtfully on another helping of macaroni and cheese a la Ella.

"Les, that's your fourth bowl for dinner and you didn't even bother to heat it up." Stephanie watched him shovel another cold forkful into his mouth as he shrugged.

"You take what you can, and I take Ella's cooking hot, cold, cooked, raw. Frankly, as long as it's not sticks and granola, I'm a happy man. Besides, you're the one to talk. You're on your third."

"Yes, but mine is melted warm cheesy goodness."

Lester pushed his bowl to the side and leaned over to Stephanie's screen. "Anything good?"

"Not really. I'm feeling governmented-out. I've been looking through these databases for so long, I don't even know where I am anymore." Stephanie sighed and leaned back as she shoved another Rice Krispy treat in her mouth.

"Well, we have a few more hours. It's only six. I'm going to run Pinkie through the system next. Who you working on?"

Stephanie brought up another screen and a picture flashed up, "Donald Creto. Apparently he is originally from Venezuela.." Stephanie continued to click on the keyboard and write information on a yellow note pad.

"Venezuela's good. I mean, that's south and all. More southern than Florida. We know the weapons are coming from somewhere south, so that's a good start."

"So, what exactly are we looking for, Lester?"

Lester leaned back and placed his pen on the desk. "Here's the deal, Steph. The whole reason were doing this is first, your safety, and second, it's all going back to the guns. With Vince's idea of all your skips being involved in the SA shit, we need to know where the guns are coming from. It's sort of like, 'follow the yellow brick road.'"

"We're going to find the wizard?" Stephanie asked curiously.

"In a way yes. We don't know who the ringleader is. We have no idea why these guns have been such a problem or why the government can't find shit. Like we've said before, whoever is involved with this, they are covering their ass so well, we don't even know what the ass looks like."

"So maybe Venezuela really is a start?"

"Yes. If we can find a name or group or specific location, it's going to be huge. Zero finding the link to white phosphorus and the recent weapons drop was huge."

"Well, I'll see what else I can bring up on this guy. All their names sound a little foreign to me so maybe they are all from Venezuela." Stephanie suggested.

"That could be true. And if it is, we can search specifically within Venezuela. Heaven knows there's a shit load of bad people down there. How about quitting time at ten?" Lester wagged his eyebrows.

"Ugh. That's so long, but I suppose." They fell into a working silence and occasionally murmured to themselves.

An hour later Stephanie jumped as Lester broke the silence. "Where'd you say Creto was from?"

"Oh, uh…it's right here." Stephanie ran her finger down the paper, "Venezuela."

"Oh, nuts. Well, Pinkie's from our favorite location of Colombia."

"Don't they have good coffee there?"

"Coffee nothing, the women…" Lester faded off and Stephanie rolled her eyes. "I wonder why nothing came up on them when they were run through TPD?"

Stephanie shrugged, "I'm not sure." She stared at the picture of Donald on her screen and shook her head.

"Probably because it's TPD and they suck." Lester and Stephanie chuckled.

"I'm following some information on Donald from the initial hit, but that's about it."

"Hey, who's on your screen?" Lester sat up in his chair and turned his interest to Stephanie's monitor as he glimpsed the picture in front of her.

"Um, Donald. Gee, Les, don't you pay attention to me? I just said…"

"No, shit. Look at this." Lester pointed to his screen and a similar pose of Pinkie holding a sign.

"That's odd." Stephanie commented as they looked between the two screens.

"Look at their ID signs. Obviously not a coincidence." Lester hit 'control p' as did Stephanie and they looked at the pictures side by side.

"Do you think they are related, you know, family?"

"Unlikely. And they aren't the same person, look at the hair line. One's from Colombia and the other Venezuela. However, I think we might be on to something. This is the could be a solid lead towards finding the SA's." Lester ran his fingers down both papers and fingered the series of numbers and letters strung together on their identification signs: AX4D78SA29V3. "Maybe it's a cross-reference number of sorts. Shit. I don't know. I'll keep looking, but seriously, Steph, the women…" Stephanie slapped him on the head and Lester turned his chair and attention back to his screen as they fell back into silence.

Though the information was helpful it was nothing ground breaking. Stephanie read files and searched for Venezuela and Columbia information producing very little results. Stephanie really didn't see any real connection between the two, but continued to follow folders and view files from the depths of the government systems. Security messages kept popping up and Stephanie continued to enter information to bypass the government firewalls. For being concerned about security, RangeMan was sure amazing at breaching it. As she entered another access code, the screen flashed red and a cursor blinked in the middle of the screen as the background returned to black. Startled, Stephanie typed in the RangeMan secret information and nothing happened. The code was deleted and the cursor continued to blink.

"Shit," She whispered under her breath. She leaned forward on the desk and clasped her hands together at her mouth. She tried typing again and nothing happened. She flipped through her information from Tank and began entering more sequences producing the same result. Glancing over at Lester, he was in his zone. Stephanie tried the first scenario again and the cursor continued to blink. Looking at the papers scattered on her desk, she bit her cheek thoughtfully. Peeking out under several sheets of paper was a print out from earlier. Stephanie placed her ring finger on the photo of Pinkie and pulled it out from under the other sheets, dragging it across the table until it was in front of her.

"Fucking _Cloak and Dagger_." She whispered as she typed in the series of numbers and letters on Pinkie's photo. She held her breath as she hit '3 enter.' The screen cleared and pulled up another security window. She proceeded to go through the RangeMan sequence and brought up a new screen with several folders lining the left side of the screen. Clicking on a folder, she began reading the information and opened more screens bringing up a pdf document with a message in the middle of the screen. It seemed out of character for a government file as the message was flanked by two filled in silhouettes resembling the gals on trucker mud flaps. She shook her curls and realized it was in Spanish.

"Hey, Les, what's this say?" Stephanie poked Lester in the side, startling him. He followed her finger to the screen and Lester cocked his head and let out a laugh.

"What are you looking at, Beautiful? Some type of Colombian porn? I know that told you the girls were amazing, but I never took you for that kind of girl."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Stephanie said defensively.

"Steph, it says, 'For a good time click here.'" Lester got a huge grin on his face.

"Come on, Lester! I'm serious. I can't read it." Stephanie whined.

"I'm telling you the truth! I swear!"

"Then why would this be in a government file?"

"What?" Lester leaned over and ran the mouse of the message clicking over the link.

"Holy, shhh…." Lester put a hand over his mouth. Stephanie skimmed through the report and picked out a few English phrases, countries, and a name, regardless of English or Spanish, which she knew. Lester pressed 'control p' and Stephanie ripped the paper out of the printer.

"Ranger? Oh my, god, Lester!" She grasped the paper to her chest. "Ranger!"

"Uh, Steph, I…" Stephanie shot up so fast her chair hit the wall, she ran across the control room to Ranger's office, followed by Lester, where Ranger was already standing in the door.

"Ranger. The SA's…I mean…You are, well, Colombia-Venezuela cartel…You!" Stephanie held up the print out. "I mean, it's in Spanish so I can't really read it, but..."

Ranger took the paper from her hand and began reading. He took a sharp intake of breath, startling her. Ranger sighing is the equivalent of someone walking out in front of a semi truck, however, Ranger audibly breathing heavy? "Fuck," He barely whispered. His eyes snapped up. "Where did you find this?" His voice came out like that of a deadly mercenary.

"Uh…..I…" Stephanie felt short of breath and sort of whimpered.

"Santos, what the fuck is this?" Ranger's features went stony and his voice barely audible.

Lester shook his head and pointed to Stephanie.

"Santos, get the others." Lester complied and signaled Tank and Bobby.

"Babe," Ranger settled a hand at her neck and shoulder, "where did this come from?" His tone was less hostile and he sensed the fear Stephanie felt from his voice.

"On, um, on a link." Stephanie stammered out. Ranger guided Stephanie into his office and signaled for Bobby, Tank, and Lester to follow. They all complied and formed a wall of muscle. The door clicked as the lock turned and Ranger walked around to stand in front of his men.

"What is it, Boss?" Bobby frowned.

Ranger eyed the three men in his office and took in Stephanie's pallor look. His blank face slammed on and he visibly calmed, preparing to continue.

"We've been compromised."

000000

**So, don't hate me. I've been trying to be more consistent with not leaving you hanging, but this one isn't too terrible (I think?) and it was necessary this time, I swear! As a result, I'm working on the next chapter as you read. Hopefully, since I don't have a large paper due this week I'll have it up much quicker. Let me know what you think and perhaps it will go quicker! Thanks for reading!**


	30. Chapter 30

*****Since I left you all rudely hanging, I couldn't be mean and let you hang it out. And, since I got such amazing feedback and lots of reviews from everyone (and desires to write faster and post ASAP!), the next chapter is up fast just for you! However, because of this, I'm not sure if I can get another one up this week. I'll try, but probably not, more school. :(**

**Thanks all so much for the many and wonderful reviews, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: Ranger is still a teensy bit pissed, so he gets a little vocal, so, be warned. Also, SA's: Special Artillery.*****

Previously....

_"What is it, Boss?" Bobby frowned._

_Ranger eyed the three men in his office and took in Stephanie's pallor look. His blank face slammed on and he visibly calmed, preparing to continue._

_"We've been compromised."_

* * *

All three men gave Ranger their blank face. Their stances stilted and Ranger walked around his desk, setting the printout in front of him. Stephanie ran her eyes from each one and instantly felt small, like an outcast. Ranger eyed Stephanie, still not speaking. Stephanie tried to suppress a shiver, but it ran its course through her arms, her shoulders involuntarily shaking. She adjusted from the left foot to the right back to the left. No one spoke. For once, Stephanie had nothing to say.

Ranger stared back at the paper and then at his men, his eyes were black and beady swimming with pure anger. Each man stood with his arms crossed, straining their black tees, jaws set in a tight line, waiting for a command.

Finally, as a hissing whisper, Ranger spoke, his resolve obviously not intact. "I want to know where the fuck this came from. I want to know how the fuck this got accessed. I want to know why we've been played like a fucking fiddle and for how fucking long!" By the end of his tirade his voice had reached epic decibels.

The men took a simultaneous deep breath and lifted their chins ever so slightly. No one spoke while Ranger paced behind his desk. Turning his back on the occupants of his office, he closed his eyes until he no longer saw red. Finally, counting backwards from thirty in Spanish, he reached 'one.' He took a deep breath through his nose and turned around directing his attention towards Stephanie, his blank face in place. Stephanie stood wide-eyed looking at the four men.

"Explain." Ranger turned to Lester, staring him down. Had it been any other person, they probably would have peed their pants on site, but not Santos. Instead, he unfolded his left arm and pointed directly at Stephanie. Four sets of eyes focused on the small brunette who shifted her butt around contemplating whether or not to let her bladder loose as she focused on Ranger's cold eyes.

"Uhh…I…" Stephanie rubbed her cheeks and pulled her eyes. The muscles in her jaw ticked as she closed her eyes tight then opened them staring back into eight eyes. _'Rats, nothing changed.'_ "I'm sorry Ranger, I…I can't do this…this…you."

Ever so slightly, Ranger lifted an eyebrow. He darted his eyes to Tank who even more imperceptibly shook his head. Stephanie didn't deserve his wrath; she only stumbled upon the information.

A warm hand touched her own. Though his mercenary demeanor did not change, she saw the shift in his eyes and the rage was replaced with, well, normal Ranger.

"Ranger, what does that piece of paper say?" Stephanie's voice was barely above a whisper, surprising her, so she cleared her throat.

"It holds confidential information that you should not have been able to access." Ranger replied.

"From RangeMan?" Her voice sounded much more Stephanie-like and a little more confident.

"Babe, this information is highly classified."

"H..h…how highly?"

"So for-your-eyes-only-high it can only be accessed from within the Federal building on a secure server in a secure room. When orders come through, I get a phone call. Period. I go to the Federal building for debriefing and to review documents like these," he pulled the paper from his desk and held it up, "to know what the orders are and where I'm going. They are never sent out. Ever."

"You mean these files…"

"These files are not even held on RangeMan computers because of their sensitive nature. Everything regarding what you accessed is locked very securely in the Federal building. We can't access them, from outside source for risk of jeopardizing operations."

"Oh, god. Ranger. All this time…" Realization hit Stephanie and her hand flew to her mouth.

Ranger nodded. "That's right, Babe. My "wind" assignments."

"I…I saw your name in that document, and Lester's."

Ranger nodded again. He looked at his men who maintained their position. "For the past two years I've been going to Venezuela and Colombia to gather intel and observe the movements of a joint Colombian-Venezuelan cartel. It's a very powerful body made up of very dangerous people. They call themselves the Del Margino cartel. Aside from the higher-ups issuing the assignments, the only other people aware of these missions or accompanying me are those three." He pointed to Lester, Bobby, and Tank. "I, or sometimes we, sat in the jungle and vegetation for days and weeks on end during the missions observing the cartel. However, we have never been able to identify Del Margino. Original reports indicated that it wasn't a man, but they in fact believe the leader to be a woman. We still don't know if it's a man or a woman or what it even looks like. All these years I seemed to always miss the leader and was never able to obtain a positive ID. If we just knew what the guy looked like, we would have been able to solidify a target and shut down the operation, but we never knew if the leader was on site. It wouldn't have done us any good to destroy the camp without the head honcho killed in the blast."

Ranger sounded slightly bitter and remorseful. He clenched his jaw and turned his attention fully back to Stephanie. "I believe that you have stumbled across the distributor involved with the SA's. This was more than a find, this seems more like a fucking set up. Babe, where did you get this?"

"I was looking for information with Lester and pulled it up off some server."

"Which one?"

"I…I don't know!"

"What do you mean?" Ranger asked.

"There were so many different places I went. I started out with TPD, then went to ATF, then the FBI, I mean, I could have been in NSA or CIA for all I know."

Ranger looked at his men.

"Carlos, what are we going to do about this?" Tank's voice was deep and commanding.

"Nothing. There is nothing we can do at this point except maintain the classified nature of this case. Our missions never existed. We aren't to share this information with anyone. Let's find some shitty link to shipping records in Miami and send it over to TPD to get them running. The one thing we do know now is where the guns are coming from. We just don't know when and we still don't know who. Steph, I know I don't have to tell you the serious classified nature of this discovery."

Stephanie nodded her head vigorously.

"Tank, go back to what you were doing. Brown Santos you're coming with me. Babe, show me."

The four of them walked back to Conference Room F. Stephanie sat at her computer flanked by Bobby and Lester. Ranger stood behind her, arm crossed, thumb under chin.

"Oh, my god." Stephanie looked at the blank screen and hit a few keys. "I, it was here, I swear. Lester saw it too."

"Let me see." Bobby pulled the keyboard over and began entering sequences of numbers as security screens flashed up. Ranger watched Bobby work the computer and turned to Lester.

"Tell me what you found." Ranger asked.

"Steph found Donald in some database as originally coming from Venezuela." Lester began.

"So I followed a trail on him and Lester ran a search on Pinkie and found he was from Colombia." Stephanie added.

"That's right. Then, we found these." Lester pulled the two photos out from earlier and set them so Ranger could see.

Ranger observed them and ran his finger across the matching ID signs, just as Lester had done. "What is the significance?"

Lester pointed his thumbs over to Stephanie.

"Babe?"

"It was an accid…"

"Whoa." Bobby said as the screen went black with the exception of a blinking cursor. "The screen just flashed red and turned to this. I can't get in."

"That's where these guys came in." Stephanie tapped the picture of Pinkie.

"You're shitting me?" Bobby gave Stephanie an incredulous look. She shook her head. Bobby proceeded and entered the matching number from the photos. "Man, Steph, this is like, serious_ Cloak and Dagger_ shit." Stephanie smirked and nodded her head in agreement. He went through the same process Stephanie did and let out a low whistle. "Look at this."

"Where is this coming from?" Ranger bent down over the desk.

"I have no idea." Bobby's fingers flew over the keyboard. "Let me look into the computer's system."

"This isn't right, Bobby. This looks different than what I originally accessed." Stephanie scanned the screen.

"But, we went through the same procedure." Bobby kept working on the screen.

"No, mine looked different. The screen almost looked like those old computers with a list of little file icons down the left side."

"Wait, there's the number I need…Fuck!"

Suddenly, the computer screen flashed red and went back to a blank screen with the exception of a strange government logo no one had ever seen.

"My, god, what have we stumbled across?" Lester whispered. The three of them exchanged glances and looked back to Ranger.

"It's where the orders come from." He lifted his shoulders like it was common knowledge. The other three looked like their eyes were going to pop out and maintained their opened mouth expressions.

"I thought we were working with, like, the CIA or something. Holy, shhh…whoa." Lester kept looking at the screen.

"It didn't happen like this." Stephanie finally said.

"If it was the same thing, then this logo would have been on the screen when we sat down. It wasn't, it was just a blank screen." Lester said looking at the strange logo or intertwined snakes and vines and a pretty cool Rambo looking knife that read "untouchable."

"What if you did access a different computer?" Bobby suggested.

"Alright Bobby, this let's say that the computer I accessed was in fact different than this super secret computer you just accessed, why would the same code take you somewhere else?"

Bobby thought very hard about this and looked over at Lester who shrugged. Bobby shook his head and thoughtfully twirled a pen. "Suppose whoever you accessed was logged into the system."

"I don't understand." Stephanie shook her curls and furrowed her brow.

Lester suddenly sat up. "Hey, I think you may be onto something, Brown."

"What if someone was linked into the super secret computer and you hit a link that put you into their computer?" Bobby asked.

"Mmm, not likely, networking doesn't work like that. You know that. Stephanie wouldn't have known how to access that stuff." Lester rubbed his chest and bit his bottom lip. "Shit, I've got it! I think this code from the pictures was privy to one computer alone. It had nothing to do with the super secret computer. You remember that link you hit that I thought you were looking at porn?" Lester asked.

"How could I forget?" Stephanie rolled her eyes.

"There's no way that would be on the secret computer. Look at the men they deal with." He pointed back to Ranger who said nothing. "The code took you to where you were suppose to be directed, someone's personal computer. However, you were probably discovered and they kicked you out of their system." Bobby was biting the end of his pen as Lester continued. "Now since they've been compromised, they have to cover their ass. They have altered the system so anyone using these codes is directed to the super secret computer that has the same information they stole, that way you, the accesser, thinks nothing changed. That way, their computer can no longer be hacked. It's even better because the super secret computer has an automatic trojan detector that kicks outside users out after 15 seconds. You are being directed to the original computer source that holds all of Ranger's "wind" assignment's. It looks different because it _is_ different. These fuckers move fast."

"We've come across this before." Ranger finally spoke, grabbing their attention. "Remember last year when we came across a similar situation of being redirected? It has to be the same person. The same person that covers their ass so well, they don't even have an ass."

Bobby and Lester nodded.

"So, what now, Boss?" Bobby asked.

"What exactly was the number you were looking for?" Ranger asked.

"It's the computer IP."

"IP?" Stephanie asked.

"It's like a birth certificate. Lets you know who the computer is registered to, where it came from, where it is currently located, everything."

"Pull it up again, Brown."

Bobby snapped back to attention and got busy again. As he pulled up the screen with the information, Lester reached over and quickly hit the 'print screen' button as the computer kicked them out again.

"Nice one, Santos." Bobby said.

"You know, Boss, I think that, uh," Lester cleared his throat, "the work restriction with Brown and me oughtta be lifted. Don't you think? We just work so well together."

Ranger retrieved the paper from the printer and handed it to Bobby, glaring at Lester. "Run it. I know what it is going to tell you, but I want to be sure. When you get the information, we'll review what you discovered. I have a plan."

Bobby complied and exited the conference room with a smile on his face.

"You did good. Both of you." Ranger placed a kiss on Stephanie's head and Lester leaned back in his chair.

"What? Nothing for me? What the hell man!" Lester threw his arms up. Ranger returned the favor by giving him a dark glare.

"Don't access this system anymore."

"But…" Stephanie began.

"This information has already been compromised and altered. Whoever owns this information is already aware of an intruder. Do you have any idea what the other information was?"

"Dated information. At least that's what the files looked like to me. Possibly a log of some sorts? I was just trying to choose one to open and picked the one that said 'Venezuela.' Why was that report in Spanish?"

"Because it was for me."

"That doesn't really answer my question."

Ranger gave her a blank stare.

"But that's good enough for me." She added quickly.

"Why don't you two call it a night on this information? Start up again tomorrow. Santos, run the cartel information by Vince. He also informed me of the possible link after he told you. Brief him on this new information."

Lester acknowledged and turned back when he got to the door. "What do you think of my proposition?"

"Santos." Ranger growled out. Lester shrugged and left. "Babe?"

"Oh, I think I'm going to call Mary Lou."

"Babe, it's after eleven."

Stephanie looked at the clock. "I guess it is. Hmmm. And Les and I were going to call it quits at ten. Then off to bed it is. Rumor has it there's a decadent hot chocolate with lots of whipped cream waiting in the break room." Stephanie said her good nights and grabbed a steaming cup of cocoa as she retreated to her apartment for the evening.

RangeMan had wrapped up from the day's activities and Ranger sat in his office with Tank staring at the information Stephanie and Lester found.

"How the hell did this happen?" Ranger murmured.

"I don't know man. It is the government. It's not like we can trust them." Tank replied.

"I know that. Trust _me_. But still. I never took my superiors as breachers of this type of information. It has to be someone on the outside. We're too good for that. Too professional. Look at me." Ranger shook his head, "I go at their beck and call without question."

"Carlos, you do it because you have to. Don't give me that shit."

Ranger gave his friend a tight look and nodded.

"You know we can't find out anything you asked for until Brown comes back with the information. We are going to need to access the system somehow, you realize that, Boss."

Ranger leaned his chair back and rubbed his hands through his hair, standing it on end.

"I know, Tank. I already know what his report is going to say, but I already know how we're going to handle everything. Like I said. I have a plan."

"Want to fill me in"

"Not yet. We still need the other pieces."

"It's like I told Santos yesterday, we gotta find Pinkie. He's the only link we have right now. Him, the bitch, the dead bodies. We're running thin." Tank rubbed his bald head.

"I know, but we have to get through the surface. I've heard nothing about Pinkie's whereabouts. My contacts on the street have come up with nothing. You know it's bad if we can't find him, he's in deep hiding."

"I'm going to put Zero on the shipping logs for the past three years. Since we know about Del Margino, he'll be able to pin point the boats leaving port down there. We should have some pretty solid leads as far as export and import dealings. We'll really be able to get a timeline now."

"Good, have him check Trenton for the past three months. Also," Ranger put his hands under chin and leaned forward, "have Vince check Walker's travel log. They should have her information sorted by now and should be able to find out who she really is. I should have done this years ago when I first met her, but I didn't think of going that deep."

"You mean, government deep?"

"Yes. If it is her changing this information, then that would explain why we she looks so normal yet suspicious on paper. Everything could be completely fabricated."

"Anything else regarding Walker?" Tank asked his friend.

Ranger gave his friend a dark glare over his steepled finger. "Walker can go to hell."

000000

Paige and Joe were sitting at a bar down the street from the police station engaged in conversation over a tall round table. Paige looked over at the bar and waved. Slater arrived with a pitcher of beer and took the vacant bar stool next to Joe.

"Hey, Joe, Gunner." Paige shook her red bob and smiled at his nickname.

"You missed a hell of a funeral, man." Joe muttered.

"Hey, he was your colleague and a good friend, asshole." Slater said as he poured rounds.

"So good he forgot about it this morning." Paige added as she lifted her cup.

"Both of you can just shut the hell up. I got the wake up call from hell this morning, and my shoulder still hurts." Joe rubbed his shoulder and took his glass from the center of the table.

"What took you so long, Slater? I thought you were coming back this morning?" Paige asked.

"I was, but I got held up with logistics at the office. I couldn't leave until the early afternoon. It's not like it's a twenty-minute drive. I had to check in with the field office here, all kinds of good stuff. So, what's the down low?"

"God, let's see…Went to a funeral. Manoso assaulted Joe this morning. Manoso sent my employment history to TPD. Manoso's been looking into my file. Damn. Manoso, Manoso, Manoso! What is it with that man that ruins my life?"

This got a chuckle out of Slater, "Don't you think that maybe you brought this upon yourself? I mean, you did…"

Paige raised her hand and shook her head, "Yeah, yeah, I suppose some of it. It still pisses me off. So what now?"

"What do you mean?" Slater asked.

"Well, your brilliant idea of using Stephanie went over so well, especially when she found me in Joe's bed."

"Hey, it was a good place for you to be, honey." Joe piped in as he took a swig of beer.

"Well, you guys certainly did fuck up the situation." Slater shook his head.

"Our case is going nowhere fast, Slater." Joe began. "We don't have any solid links and I know that Manoso is hiding information from us. He's going to take everything for himself and leave us high and dry and looking like shit."

All three leaned back in their chairs assuming the thinking position. Hands clasped behind their head staring at the ceiling.

"Go to the Chief." Slater said suddenly.

"What?" Joe asked resuming his drinking position.

"Talk to Larson. Tell him you need access to RangeMan's systems." Slater said nonchalantly.

"It's not exactly that easy, Slate." Paige said tapping her glass.

"Sure it is. RangeMan is going to do what Larson asks. You tell the Chief that you need to have access to RangeMan because they are not giving you information fast enough. The death toll is only getting higher and there's bound to be another shipment coming in the next several days or weeks. We need to stop it. Larson will call Manoso and send you over to RangeMan. He's not going to say no. You'll have open access to RangeMan. Just like before."

They all sat staring into their near empty glasses. Joe reached for the pitcher and topped his glass.

"I'll do it." Joe said. "I'll talk to the Chief and we'll show up and RangeMan tomorrow."

Paige reached for Joe's arm and nodded, glancing at her watch. "Then let's go home and hit RangeMan early. Chief should be in by eight."

They downed the rest of the beer in their glasses and slammed the cups on the table. They left the bar and walked down the street to their vehicles. Joe turned back as Slater unlocked his Durango.

"What about you, Slater?" Joe asked. "Want to join?"

Slater ran his tongue over his teeth and grinned, "I thought you'd never ask."

000000

**So, was it okay? A little surprised at all? Let me know what you think, and remember, I got this baby up quick because I was mean to you all last chapter!**

**Oh, and a completely non-related FF side note (and no, I don't work for them): For those of you living in the States, this Wednesday (April 27) is 31 cent scoop night at Baskin-Robbins from 5-10pm! I don't like ice cream, but I figure for those of you that do...get a scoop and read my fic! Yay!**


	31. Chapter 31

*****This is a beefy chapter for you all since it took longer to put up, only because I was nice posting last Monday. I try to post on Friday, Wednesday if you're lucky. School's been swamping me and I've had papers galore!**

**Disclaimer: SA's- Special Artillery, ME- Medical examiner, if you recognize them (and don't hate them) they probably aren't mine.**

**Thanks so much to all who have faithfully and diligently reviewed and made wonderful suggestions! You have no idea how great it makes me feel. Life's been falling apart and your words are encouraging and make my day! Thank you!*****

Previously....

_"What about you, Slater?" Joe asked. "Want to join?"_

_Slater ran his tongue over his teeth and grinned, "I thought you'd never ask."_

* * *

Chief Larson eyed the detective standing in front of his desk, listening to the woes of a case.

"Absolutely not Detective Morelli." Larson said sitting up straight.

"What do you mean? There are people dying every day out there because of these weapons and we are getting shit from RangeMan. Not only that, we need to find Pinkie."

"First, I can't just send all of you over to RangeMan unannounced. And second, you," he turned his attention to Paige who was standing to the left of Joe, "are due in the morgue today with Slater. You were supposed to go yesterday, but Slater informed me of traveling difficulties so I arranged with the ME to allow you access today."

"Shit, I forgot." Paige whispered.

"Now, there is no way I am going to send all three of you to RangeMan. I will however call and see if they will allow one of you onto the premises. You are both dismissed; I will let you know within the hour of my decision. Walker, you are expected in the morgue at ten." Larson waved his hand and Joe and Paige took that as the gesture to leave.

"That went over well." Joe said.

Slater met them at the bottom of the stairs and cocked his head.

Paige shook her head, "No go. We've got morgue duty and a meeting with the medical examiner."

"Shit. I don't have access to my computer until tomorrow, and that might seem a little odd with me going in on a Sunday." Slater said.

"Why can't you go in now?" Joe asked.

"They're cleaning the floors and running a security check since yesterday night. Everyone had to leave before noon yesterday and then were asked to come in at three today and stay until nine. Talk about shitty government hours."

"But why can't we look for information here?" Paige began.

"Because we need a government grade secure server and there are only a handful of those in the area. Stunningly, the Federal Building and RangeMan happen to have the most access without having to go through the government channels." Slater put his feet up on the desk.

"Oh. Guess I always took it for granted." Paige said sitting on the corner of the desk.

Joe's desk phone rang and he picked it up. "Yes. Uhuh. Now? Now? Fine." He hung up and looked at the others.

000000

"I will let you know it ten minutes." Ranger placed the receiver back in the cradle of the phone base. Setting his elbows on his desk, he clasped his hands and rest his chin in them, staring at the door. The door opened simultaneously with a knock and Tank entered. He clicked the door closed and placed a folder on Ranger's desk.

"What's up man?" He said without taking a seat.

"TPD wants to send Morelli over." Ranger said staring through Tank's torso.

"And you said no?" Tank raised a eyebrow at Ranger's lack of response. "Hell, boss. Really?"

"I didn't say anything Tank."

"So you _are_ considering it?"

"We don't have anything to hide. Maybe it could work to our advantage."

Tank ran a hand across his bald head. "Fuck man. For real? It's like letting the wolf into the hen house to baby-sit."

Ranger shifted his gaze up to meet the large man's eyes.

Tank sighed. "One hour. That's all I'm authorizing, and I'm sandwiching him between Hector and Junior."

Ranger reached for the phone as Tank left his office.

"Send Morelli. We'll take him for one hour." Ranger listened to Chief Larson. "I understand, but we are busy too. One hour. Yes. Send him immediately." Ranger disconnected the call and looked at his watch. It was 8:14. Stephanie would still be sleeping, but Joe would probably still be in RangeMan by the time she came down to work. At 9:15, he would send Ella up with breakfast. That would hold her over at least until ten. Ranger smiled as he pressed a number on the phone.

"Ella?" He listened to the sweet lady's voice. "Will you take Stephanie breakfast this morning? A large one. No, not for my liking. Tailor it to her desires, I'm sure you will be creative. Yes, keep her occupied until ten." Ranger met Tank in the middle of the control room to watch the monitors for Morelli's arrival and counted down the time until he would be gone.

000000

"I have to leave now!" Joe grabbed his jacket and Slater and Paige followed him up the stairs and out to his car.

"But we didn't even discuss what we have to do." Paige insisted as she jogged to keep up.

"They are giving me one hour, Paige. That's it. Make it fast." Joe said as he arrived at his car.

"Here." She handed him a folded piece of light blue paper. "Run this information exactly as indicated."

Joe gave her a quizzical glance and began to unfold it.

"No! I mean, not here. You know, not right now, you have to go." Paige gave him a peck on the cheek and tugged on Slater's arm. "Let's go. We got a date with the morgue in about two hours and I've got to finish a report."

Slater stopped and halted her movements. "What was that all about?"

"What was what?" Paige asked nonchalantly as she watched Joe drive down the street.

"What did you give Morelli?"

Paige shrugged, "Nothing of consequence."

"What the hell are you doing, Paige? Are you plant…"

"Hey, when are you suddenly concerned with my actions?"

Slater put up his hands defensively and took a step back. "I just don't want to be involved with any shit you're trying to pull, especially if it involves RangeMan. You're reckless and sloppy. I'm not going there, Walker and you sure as hell aren't going to drag me into any charade you are pulling. Sure I had the idea of using Stephanie, but you killed that. And now you're using Joe for inside RangeMan? It would be different if _you_ could access their system. If it was me doing the task and I was in RangeMan, then fine, but I am not going to be dependent on other people especially from inside RangeMan. I'm not going to let you fuck things up and pull me into whatever you have planned."

"Hey! It's fine! Geez, Slate, calm down." Paige took a deep breath recollecting her temper.

"Whatever." Slater eyed Paige and set his face. "I don't trust you." Slater said flatly.

Paige surveyed the parking lot, her eyes emerald flames as she turned towards the police station. "You shouldn't." She murmured to herself.

000000

Joe took a deep breath and walked through the front doors of RangeMan to be greeted by Lester.

"Lose something?" Lester sneered sarcastically.

"Fuck you, Santos. I have an appointment." Joe shot back.

Lester twirled his pen and feigned a look of interest as he glanced at an imaginary logbook. "Hmmm. You the immediate access person?"

"Yeah, that would be me." Joe folded his arms across his chest a scowl in place.

"Ahh, that _would_ be you, here's the note. Says here 'one-hour access for asshole cop looking like a piece of shit with a stick shoved up his ass.' Hal will escort you to the elevator." Lester said off handedly, a smirk in place as he gestured to the elevator in a 'shoo' motion with his hand.

Joe made to move forward to Lester but was stalled as Hal wrapped a muscular arm around his neck while restraining his arms. Joe said a few expletives as he struggled against Hal's trunky arms.

"Hey!" Lester said leaning over the counter. "Clock's ticking. You've got 59 minutes asshole, you best be following Hal to the elevator." Lester tapped his watch for effect.

Joe threw his arms to his side and straightened his shoulders like a dejected fighting cock and walked with Hal to the elevator. Lester smiled as he flipped Joe off. Joe continued to return a death glare as the elevator doors closed.

"Ass." Lester said as he went back to his monitors. He picked up the phone and pressed '2.' "In case you didn't know, Super Cop is on his way up."

The doors opened on five and Joe was greeted by the stony faces of Tank and Ranger.

"This way." Ranger said without so much as looking at Morelli. Ranger turned and Joe followed him out of the elevator sandwiched between Tank's front and Ranger back. "You will be using this computer for the next 57 minutes. You are not permitted to leave this station at any time. If you decide that you cannot hold your bladder for 57 minutes, then you can piss on the street when you exit my building before your allotted time expires. If you need assistance with your inquiries, you will have Hector and Junior to ask." The two men flanked both sides of Joe and sat down, leaving an empty seat between them. "Any questions?"

Joe looked at the area and sighed. "No."

"You will leave my building at 9:38." Ranger turned and made for his office.

Joe sat in his chair and quickly got to work running a search on the SA's through a federal database. Finding nothing, he pulled the folded piece of paper from his pocket, shielding it with his hand, and glanced over it. He smirked at the lipstick marks left by Paige and followed the instructions on the paper. He began an intricate series of numbers and letters. Pinkie's picture popped up on the screen.

"What the hell?" Joe whispered as he leaned into the screen being cautious not to draw attention from Junior or Hector. He began to scan the information on Pinkie and read about his Colombian background. He continued to read the profile on Pinkie and the rest was common information to TPD. Nothing else too informative came up so he followed the remaining steps on the paper. A few more screens popped up disclosing very little information. After following the final step, a yellow smiley face filtered onto the screen and was then replaced by green block letters saying 'success.' Joe watched the screen disappear and was replaced by the RangeMan search screen. Joe blinked a few times and then felt a strong hand settle on his shoulder.

"Time to go, Morelli." Joe jerked his head up to see Tank looming over him. He nodded and crumpled the piece of paper in his hand as he walked to the elevator. He was handed off to Hal who pushed the lobby button. As the doors opened, Hal remained guard at the elevator as Joe walked by Lester and the desk.

"Later, Princess." Lester called out. Joe pushed through the glass doors and stood on the sidewalk, perplexed.

"What the hell just happened?" Joe looked at his watch and noticed it was 9:39. "Bastard doesn't waste any time." Joe walked briskly to his car and decided he may be able to make it to the ME's in time to meet up with Paige and Slater.

000000

"What did Morelli access?" Ranger said staring over Woody's shoulder.

"Some weird ass stuff, Boss. Check this out." Woody pulled up the screen shots Joe accessed.

"What is that?" Ranger pointed to the screen.

"I'm not sure. I'm trying to follow the same procedures Morelli did, but it's like the information doesn't exist anymore."

"Meaning?"

"It's a very highly sophisticated form of communication. Kind of like the letters in _Mission: Impossible_ that would self-destruct after being opened. This is the same thing. After Morelli accessed it, it literally no longer exists."

"It has to. This computer system is highly sophisticated, maybe we can backtrack to recreate the things he accessed."

"Sorry, Boss. I can't recreate something that doesn't exist. It's like there was only an original and it was burned then the remains were burned and then someone decided to burn them again. There is no trace. The video feed shows what he accessed just like the screen shots I pulled up, but it doesn't do us any good for further looking into the information. Take a look." Woody pulled up the video feed and they had on Joe.

Woody fast-forwarded through to where Joe pulled out the blue paper. They saw Pinkie flash on the screen and Woody paused the image.

"What does that slip of paper say?" Ranger asked.

Woody zoomed in, flipped, rotated, took alternate angles and couldn't so much as get anything but half a lip print.

"Sorry, Boss, I've got nothing." Woody said. They continued to look at the screen.

"He knows where Pinkie is from, but nothing more. Look what he does. He continues through his file, but he gets no new information. Then a smiley face? See if you can get anything useful. Yes?" Ranger looked up at Bobby who raised the file in his hand. Ranger nodded and signaled to his office. The doors to the elevator dinged and Stephanie walked out looking content and wiping powdered sugar off her black RangeMan shirt. She waved to a few guys and walked into her cubicle.

"I'll be there in a minute, Brown." Ranger tapped on the wall and Stephanie looked up, smiling.

"Hey, Batman." She said overly cheery.

"Babe, you're late."

Stephanie blushed and flipped on her monitor. "Ella said it didn't matter if I was late."

"So Ella's in charge now?" Ranger gave her a half smirk.

"On your orders, she most certainly is. Besides, one can't rush French toast and crêpes." Stephanie sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I love that woman."

"Duly noted." Ranger placed a hand under chin and kissed her forehead. "Babe, you make those look so good." He thumbed her ear and swiped a soft kiss across her lips, turning back into business mode as he walked to his office to meet Bobby, leaving Stephanie breathless.

"This information?" Ranger raised the file to Bobby.

"The government computer Stephanie and Lester accessed, Boss. I obviously did not find anything on the information that was hacked from this computer or where it went."

Ranger reviewed the information Bobby handed him. His eyes were dark as he read the report. He picked up his phone. "Santos. Zero is coming down to relieve you. My office, now."

A few moments later Lester was walking into the office. Ranger placed the file on his desk, his suspicions confirmed about the location of the government computer.

"Well, Boss?" Lester asked.

Ranger's eyes darkened as he looked at Lester and Bobby. "The information Brown found is the computer I access in the Federal Building. Aside from me, there are two people with access to this government computer system. The process to get to this computer is very intricate and highly sophisticated. There is no bypassing it, no faking."

"How do you know. I mean, have you tried?" Bobby asked.

"I designed it." Bobby's mouth formed an 'o.'

"Guess you didn't do it good enough, huh?" Lester smirked and it was quickly wiped away by Ranger's backhand. "Ow! Someone doesn't have a sense of humor!" Lester rubbed his cheek, more stunned than anything.

Ranger shot him a dark look.

"So what are we going to do, Ranger?" Bobby asked.

"We need to access this computer to find out the source of the breach." Ranger said.

"How are we going to do that, Boss? Raise a flag and say 'here we come!'" Lester asked.

"There is a way we can get to the computer undetected."

"Meaning?" Bobby asked.

"The retina scans, voice detection, all the normal security shit, I designed the system with an integrated bypass mechanism so, if ever needed, I could have an alternate access code that can get me through without leaving a trail identifying myself. I've never used it, but it does exist. It's like when we set up a continuous feed so hallways look empty, basically the same concept. The alternate codes I created produce no recordable entry. Once inside the room with the secure computer, that's where my brilliance comes in." He shot a look to Lester. "There is a hidden recording log within the computer. It is a failsafe for hackers. In the rare situation that the computer is ever accessed from an external system, the super computer stores the invading computer's information. Name, date, time, information taken, everything. "

"And you're the only one that knows this, huh?" Lester asked.

"Yes. Now, I know that Woody is the computer whiz around here, but I can't risk exposing him to this information. It's not a matter of trust, but a matter of national security. Do you feel ready enough to handle this?"

"Always, Boss." Bobby and Lester said in unison.

"We'll brief this afternoon. We're doing this tonight."

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Paige and Slater were walking around a dead body writing on a note pad.

"At least they don't talk back." Paige said as she shined a light through a bullet hole.

"Never do. That's the beauty about the dead, they keep all your secrets." Slater commented as he wrote down the toe tag number.

A door closed behind them and they looked up to see Joe.

"Hey. RangeMan was a barrel of laughs." Joe said as he walked up to the table.

"What'd you find out." Slater asked.

"Pinkie's from Colombia."

Slater stiffened and whispered something in Spanish. "What? Colombia? Are you sure, I mean, how do you know this?"

"The information Paige gave me. I don't understand why we didn't find that in our system, but it's a start."

"Sounds like a solid lead." Paige commented as she pulled the sheet down over the cadaver's waist.

"So, where do we go with this?" Joe asked raking his eyes across the chilled bodies in front of them.

The three of them exchanged looks and Paige bit her cheek. "Wait to see what happens. When we get back to the station this afternoon we'll follow the lead. See where it takes us. What do you all think?"

Slater and Joe nodded in agreement.

"Good, we've got four bodies to go over, so pick one and get started. With any luck at all, we'll be out of here before one."

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Stephanie sat at her desk staring at the ceiling

"Hey, Beautfiul, watch ya thinking about?" Lester walked in with two plates with sandwiches.

"Why do you think that?" Stephanie resumed a natural position turning to face Lester.

"Well, you looked like you were in the sitting form of the thinking position." Lester gave her a grin and she smiled back.

"Oh, you know, contemplating the current state of South American affairs."

"Oh? Well, I thought you might be hungry."

Stephanie grabbed a plate that was extended to her as he raised an eyebrow at her. "I'm kidding, Les. I was thinking about Pinkie. Damn bastard."

"Hmm, mell, fry talfing to Fal." Lester said through a mouthful of bread.

Stephanie looked at her plate stunned. "Meatloaf sandwich? Where in the world did this come from? It's always chicken salad, veggies, or turkey!"

Lester wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and grinned. "Ella conveniently placed the leftover meatloaf from yesterday at the front of the fridge. I took the liberty of making you, and me, a Santos Special. Complete with special sauce." Lester waggled his eyebrows.

Stephanie took a giant bite and moaned. "Oh, god, Lester! Mmm."

A throat cleared and Stephanie and Lester turned around to see Ranger standing in the doorway. "Problem, Babe?"

"Uhh…no?" She stated as a question.

Ranger eyed their plates and turned his blank stare to Lester.

"What? It's lunchtime man." Lester said as he took another bite.

"My office. Ten minutes." Ranger said. He ran a thumb across Stephanie's cheek, "Babe, try to keep the noise down a little, Hal passed out at the monitor, I figured it could only be you." With that, Ranger left.

Stephanie gave Lester a shrug and continued to devour her sandwich. "Mmmm, Lester, what is it? It's so good!"

"Ahh, it is the secret ingredient and if you want to know, I'll have to kill you."

Stephanie paused mid bite and gave Lester a terrified look.

"I'm just kidding beautiful, but if I did tell you, Momma wouldn't be very happy. Anyway, like I was saying, ask Cal if he's got any leads. He's been working really hard with Vince. Something's bound to break."

"I heard Joe stopped by this morning. Were there any problems?" Stephanie asked a little timidly.

"Nope. In and out. Just running a search for TPD." Lester wiped his hands on his cargoes and stood, patting his stomach. "Well, I'm off. I won't be available this afternoon, so if you need anything, talk to Vince or Cal."

"Thanks for the sandwich, Les." She handed the plate back to Lester who placed a hand on her head. "Anytime. And be careful, don't forget to take someone with you if you leave. Right?"

Stephanie nodded. "Yeah, I know." Lester retreated back to the break room before disappearing into Ranger's office. Stephanie took another glance at her monitor and decided to finish her search before going to go find Cal.

Ranger stood in his office with Bobby and Lester going over the details of the night's mission.

"…after the third sequence and we go in." Ranger pointed at a map looking thing. "You are going to be running the security cameras the whole time. It's only you. No Tank tonight. The final step is a retina scan, then we will take these two keys and simultaneou…."

A knock interrupted the progression of their conversation.

"Enter." Ranger commanded.

Vince and Cal stepped in, "Bad time, Boss?" Vince looked around.

Ranger flipped the layout closed and pocketed the chained keys. "No."

"You're not going to believe this. We checked into the irregularities of Walker's employment record. She's part of a former weapons branch that worked under the NSA for about two years. This experimental branch kept having issues with their employees going rogue. They dismantled the branch and merged any remaining responsibilities with the ATF. Walker left before the ATF merger and worked for NSA for a few more months in the communications and travel section. Her time working for Miami PD vice is the only real documented part of her employment history for the past four years. Everything else was falsified."

Ranger clenched his jaw. "Anything else?"

"Her training with NSA was with chemical weapons, Sir. I think she may be our white phosphorus link."

"And Del Margino?" Ranger asked.

Vince straightened. "Um, we think she may be the link, Boss. We don't have the proof yet, but we think she is him."

Ranger gave a hard look calculating the information. "Good, find the link. I want the bitch nailed. It ends tonight."

"Oh, and Boss?" Cal began. Ranger blinked at him so Cal continued. "We got Pinkie on the move."

"Steph was going to be looking for you on that, you might want to tell her." Lester piped in the conversation.

"Good work. Cal, you will go with her. Bring Pinkie in, don't let her go alone, and check in." Ranger practically warned.

"Got it, Boss." Vince and Cal exited the office and clicked the door closed.

"The keys are the final step. I will then have access to the computer and will access the log." Ranger looked at Lester and Bobby. "We will leave at 1900 for the Federal Building." The three men exchanged looks and understood the next step. "Let's do this."

000000

The last body was finally stored back into the locker.

"Finally, I hate going over the bodies. They didn't reveal anything we didn't already know." Paige commented as they exited the building.

"That definitely took longer than I thought." Slater added as he flicked his wrist checking the time. "Three? Shit, I've got to go. I have a meeting in an hour. I'd hate to break away from you all, but I sadly cannot spend the afternoon with you."

"What about Pinkie?" Paige asked.

"I'll see if I can catch up with you later. Duty calls." Slater waved Joe off and got into his Durango.

Joe slipped an arm around Paige and steered her towards his car. "How about we get something to eat and then head back home?"

"Joe! I thought we were looking into Pinkie?" She asked sternly.

"Hmm, how about Pino's, then we'll contemplate Pinkie after a little activity? You know how I love to trace that scar of yours." He rubbed her arm gently and wrapped his other around her back slipping his finger into her waist band to finger her tattoo. "And the way those two bullets look from behind…honey, you drive me wild."

Paige smiled and bit his ear. "Sounds good to me. We just found out, right? It can wait a few more hours."

They picked the subs up on their way back to Joe's house. After letting Bob out the back, the subs were downed quickly with a side of beer. As the last meatball vanished, their bodies were quickly intertwined and naked on the bed. Paige lay with her back to Joe, feeling him trace the 'T' and 'P' inside the two inked bullets of her tattoo. It was nearly seven o'clock. Suddenly Paige shot up.

"Oh my, god, Joe. I'm going to be sick." Paige covered her mouth and ran to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Joe walked to the door and knocked. "Paige? You okay?"

Grunting sounds came out of the bathroom followed by the flushing of the toilet. Paige staggered out of the bathroom and collapsed into Joe's arms.

"Joe, I feel terrible." She looked up into his face.

"But you smell minty fresh." He smiled back and led her to the bed. "Here, lie down. Do you want me to get you anything?"

Paige shook her head. "No, not right now."

She pulled the blankets over her and rolled over to face him. Suddenly, their phones started ringing.

"Shit." Joe grabbed the phone. "Morelli. Uh huh. Great. Yes. She's here. No, Walker won't be there. She's puking. Yeah. I'm coming." Joe set the phone on the nightstand and ran a hand over Paige's face. "I don't want to leave you in this state."

"What's going on?"

"Shooting by the river. At least four dead and wounded all over. Gangs and civilians alike. Nasty shit, I probably won't be back until morning." Joe gave her a sad smile. "I can stay."

"No, go. It's your job. I'll be fine. I promise." Her eyes got wide and she slapped a hand to her mouth again, running to the bathroom, the door slamming shut again.

Joe sat on the bed looking at the closed door. He sighed and leaned on the frame. "Are you sure?" Joe called. Joe walked down to the kitchen quickly then waited outside the bathroom until she exited again and he handed her a glass of water. "I can stay."

"Go," She gave him a chagrined look.

"God, Paige, you're beautiful." Joe said as he kissed her hand. "I, really like you. A lot."

Paige's cat eyes glowed and a smile spread across her lips. "I know. And I feel the same, Joe. Now go." Joe nodded. He pulled the covers over her.

"I'll see ya." He kissed her head and she closed her eyes as she heard him slog down the stairs and out the front door. Paige rose from the bed and walked to the window, pulling the drapes back ever so slightly.

"Good-bye, Joe." A smile slid across her lips as she watched Joe's vehicle disappear around the corner. Releasing the drapes, she smirked haughtily as she picked her clothes up off the floor and began to dress.

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**It's getting hot in here... let me know what you think, I'm going to take your encouragement and reviews to try and post again next week.**


	32. Chapter 32

*****This chapter is longer and I was really tempted to break it into two, but I couldn't do that to you all! Paper's still not done :( but I wanted to let you all enjoy some reading. Love this chapter and enjoy...In fact, I know you will- but I expect some kind of gift too!**

**Disclaimer: Strong Language, SA's- Special Artillery*****

Previously...

_"I'll see ya." He kissed her head and she closed her eyes as she heard him slog down the stairs and out the front door. Paige rose from the bed and walked to the window, pulling the drapes back ever so slightly._

_"Good-bye, Joe." A smile slid across her lips as she watched Joe's vehicle disappear around the corner. Releasing the drapes, she smirked haughtily as she picked her clothes up off the floor and began to dress._

* * *

Stephanie stared at the computer screen lost in thought, doodling on the yellow pad in front of her.

"Want an extinguisher, Babe?"

Startled, Stephanie turned to find Ranger watching her. "Hey, Ranger."

Ranger tilted his head and his face softened slightly. "Babe?" He walked over and looked at the pad of paper. "Deep thoughts." At the top of the paper was 'Del Margino' and nothing else.

Stephanie let out a deep sigh and reached for his hand. Normally it was Ranger initiating contact, so he welcomed the gesture and squeezed her hand as she set her pen down. "I was trying to think of the connection with the SA's and that's all I got. I figured if I started with something as a header it would lead down, but I got nothing." Stephanie looked at Ranger's attire and furrowed her brow. "You look more combat than normal."

Ranger gave her a grin and touched her nose. "It's a long sleeve shirt, Babe."

"Is that all? Maybe it's just you. You seem…Oh, I don't know, different."

"I'm running an op tonight."

"Tonight?" She squeaked. She looked around and lowered her voice. "The secret computer thing?"

Ranger nodded.

"I see."

"We'll be fine, Babe."

It was Stephanie's turn to nod and she looked back at her paper. "I know."

"Babe, we're going to find the leak and once we do, we'll be able to bring everything together and you can get back to a normal life, too."

She stared at the smooth Cuban hand. "Yeah, won't that be great?" She said sarcastically. Looking up into Ranger's eyes, she briefly saw an emotion. Before she could discern it, Ranger crouched down to eye level.

"Don't say that."

Stephanie smiled and nodded then turned her attention back to her brainstorming sheet. "I don't know what the connection is, but that devil bitch has to be involved."

"We think so."

"Really?"

Ranger nodded, "Vince and Cal found she used to work for NSA."

"No way! Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get her!"

"It's not that easy, Babe. So she falsified her employment history and most her life is a lie. Whos isn't? We sent the information to Morelli, but I don't think anything is going to stem from it. He's got himself in quite…well, he's not in the right frame of mind." Ranger looked at his watch.

"But if she's the one…"

"Not so fast, Babe. This is only the tip of the iceberg. What we uncovered is accurate and she _is_ involved, we just don't know how deep. If she isn't number one, then she is setup very well to take the fall for everything."

"Ha! That wouldn't be so bad. I hate that bitch." Stephanie commented.

"And I will see to it that she never takes another breath in my presence." Ranger glanced at his watch. "It's time to go. Cal should be stopping by shortly with information for you. Be careful."

Stephanie nodded as he gave her one last kiss on her hand before he stood and left. Stephanie turned back to the computer, mesmerized by the flashing cursor in the search box on the screen. She sighed as she read the header on the pad in front of her. "So much for brain storming." She was absentmindedly drawing lines underneath 'Del Margino' when Cal disturbed her thought process.

"Hey, Steph." Cal gave her a giant smile.

"I was just getting ready to find you. Any word on Pinkie?"

"Yeup, got a call that he was on the move. He came out earlier this afternoon."

"Hmmm. So, do we know where he is? I mean, at his house, a car?" Stephanie picked the pad of paper up and sucked on the end of her pen.

"I'll have a report within," Cal glanced at his watch, "the hour. You and I will be able to pick him up since Boss just left."

Stephanie tapped her foot.

"You hungry?" Cal asked

Stephanie glanced at the pad one last time and circled 'Del Margino' continuously.

"Come on Steph, we'll grab a burger and get Pinkie on a full stomach." Cal coaxed. Stephanie nodded and grabbed her purse, bringing the pad with her.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. I don't know Cal. Something isn't right. You know what I mean?" Cal guided her to elevator and pressed 'B1.'

"What exactly?"

Stephanie stared at the pad and shrugged, "I can't put my finger on it." Stephanie looked around. "What are we doing here? Holy…what, I've never been here before." The room was its own floor of sophisticated RangeMan riot gear and private armory. Everything was black and everything looked new.

"Getting our gear, Steph. We're not going out with nothing. Vests for me and you." He walked over to a large open closet looking thing with at least forty vests hanging in sequence from XS-XXXL.

"But I thought this stuff was up on five?" Stephanie circled the room like Alice in RangerLand.

"Nah, that's the petty stuff. Guns on hand, standard vests, weapons, and com systems. Now let's see. We don't normally carry size small on the main floor either. Here." He handed her a vest and she placed it on a bench.

"So, are these going to be more effective against an SA?" Stephanie said as she took another vest from Cal.

"As far as not having the bullets rip you to shreds?"

Stephanie gulped and nodded.

"Theoretically. But they've never been tested. And as long as they don't aim for the head, right?" Stephanie paled as he turned back to the wall and fingered a drawer. "And I'm going to give you this panic button."

Stephanie gave him a look.

"Hey, better safe than sorry. I know you don't think you need it, but I'm covering my ass against Ranger's wrath. You'll like this panic button. All you need to do is push it against your leg. It's not like a Wily Coyote TNT button. Drop it in your right pocket and just push it against your thigh with your finger tip to activate it. As long as there is constant pressure placed for three seconds, it will activate. If not, it will send a message of an attempt. Or for a real quick panic and no nonsense activiation, squeeze it between your thumb and finger. Real simple."

Stephanie lifter her shoulders and dropped the device in her right pocket like he instructed. She then strapped a Sig to her ankle and a knife in her lower leg pocket. Cal blushed as Stephanie turned around and he attached a tracker to the small of her back.

"Okay. Are we good yet?" Stephanie watched as Cal continued to strap on guns and ammo and placed them in pockets, around his waist, down his shirt? (Yes, down his shirt) and around his leg. "Sweet mercy, I think we're good, Cal." Stephanie's stomach let out a growl and Cal motioned to the elevator.

"I think you're right. Grab the vests."

000000

"Clear."

The faintest sound of clothing rubbing together echoed off the department walls. Though it wasn't witching hour late, it was late enough for the government to go to bed. Due to an unknown cleaning schedule, the last of the workers didn't leave the building until after eight, which is unheard of for the government. Ranger and his men waited in their positions for over an hour longer than they had anticipated. The dark halls of the Federal Building barely revealed the two dark figures stopped in front of a security door. Obeying the command, a burly figure reached into his pocket and the standard sound of a card being swiped momentarily disturbed the silence. Granting access, the green light above the door handle blinked rapidly illuminating the figures in an eerie glow. A hand reached out and pushed the heavy door open. Stepping inside, the figures moved silently in the darkness.

They walked along the wall down the darkened corridor for several hundred feet. Had they not known what they were looking for, anyone else would have bypassed the inconspicuous stainless steel square on the wall. They both stopped. One of them placed his large palm over the plate; it was cool to the touch. Several seconds passed and finally a faint click echoed through the hallway. The wall stood ajar and the two bodies moved inside. They barely fit in the confined space of the inlet chamber, an airplane bathroom was almost more spacious.

"You're clear. I have no com until you step back into the inlet chamber. You have five minutes." Bobby's voice broke through the radio. Ranger pressed a button on his watch.

"Fuck, Boss. I thought you said you could bypass all this."

Ranger stared at Lester and removed a keycard from his pocket. "I said I could come in undetected, I didn't say for how long. Stay close, Santos." Ranger pulled a card from his pocket and swiped it across a keypad all the while entering a sequence of eight numbers on the pad. The light blinked green and they were granted access through another door. They slid out of the small space and into a 20x10 area that had a single door on the opposite side.

"Holy shit, what is this?" Lester asked.

"Detail Room. Do not move." Ranger commanded.

Lester looked but did not touch. Ranger got to work unpacking his pocket. He handed Lester a chain with a weird looking cylindrical key dangling from the bottom. It looked like a cross between a squashed malt ball and a bundle of jacks melted together. He retrieved another small keycard. Instead of a standard looking keycard, this one was transparent with an iridium security strip. Lester continued to gape.

The room had a metal tiled floor and blank silver walls that looked like large panels. A single recessed halide shined on the middle of the room. Suddenly, a tile lighted on the floor next to the wall and a portion of the wall slid up, revealing a keypad and a sophisticated box. Moving swiftly, Ranger stood on the lit square in front of the first device.

Ranger entered a different sequence of thirteen numbers on a keypad and leaned into the device. A silver light ran across his face while a green circle centered over his eye. The light turned yellow and a female voice said, "Proceed."

Lester gave Ranger a stunned look, "Bomber?"

Ranger shot him a death glare as the wall returned to its previous state. Lester took that moment to smile to himself and maintain seriousness. Another tile lit up and Ranger walked to where the wall again opened in the same manner. A keypad turned up illuminated by a bright blue light. Again Ranger effortlessly entered another sequence of eleven numbers. Acknowledging verification, Ranger stepped forward and placed his left hand on a glowing pad. His palm was scanned and the woman spoke again, "Proceed." Ranger waited for the next square to illuminate.

He again followed the same procedure. Ranger punched in a new sequence of eight numbers and the voice said, "Identify yourself."

"Ricardo Carlos Manoso." Ranger spoke.

"Not found." The voice said.

Ranger typed in the sequence of numbers again, "Identify yourself."

"Ricardo Carlos Manoso." Nothing happened. "Shit."

"Not found." The voice repeated.

Ranger turned back to Lester who shook his head. Ranger closed his eyes and thought, then entered a new set of numbers.

"Identify yourself."

"Ricardo Carlos Manoso."

"Proceed." The woman said.

"Santos," Lester walked over and Ranger waited momentarily for the final square to light and reveal the next machine. A large keypad slid out with numbers 0-9 and ten random letters. Each number was illuminated in the same blue light. As Ranger quickly tapped the pad the lights went out until the pad was black. A panel with two holes lit and Ranger nodded to Lester. Both men placed their keys in the holes.

Lester waited for Ranger, "One, two, three." They simultaneously turned the keys clockwise and the card reader on the door lit. Ranger slid the fancy iridium card through the slot and the door stood ajar.

"Please be careful on you mission." The voice said. The corner of Ranger's mouth slightly tipped up as they proceeded into a room with a large screen, lots of flashing buttons, and more modules than you could shake a stick at.

"We have three minutes and nineteen seconds.

"Whoa." Lester said.

Ranger quickly accessed the computer and began accessing the failsafe log.

"Nice touch with the 'voice,' Boss." Lester smirked as watched Ranger access the computer.

"Fuck off, Santos." Ranger didn't miss a beat as he focused on the computer. "We got it." Lester quickly stepped over and looked over his shoulder going over the readouts.

The failsafe listed thirty-two entries of access to the system dated over the span of three years. Ranger rolled over the entries and each one produced the same name. Different computers, but the same user. Ranger and Lester exchanged glances.

"Holy,"

"Shit." Lester finished.

Some were merely breaches of the systems while fourteen actually had files copied. Ranger opened the files that were hacked and he drew in a steady breath. "All my missions, Santos. Every fucking one of them." Ranger imperceptibly shook his head. "No wonder we could never find Del Margino. Bastard always knew when we were coming. The mission was botched from the beginning."

"Look, Boss." Lester pointed at the screen. "Last time this computer was accessed was just over a month ago."

Ranger clicked on the log. "From here."

"What?"

"This computer has been accessed from one within this building. We need the location." A sharp beeping sound made Ranger work faster. "We have thirty-five seconds."

"Come on, Ranger. Faster."

"It's….come on…" Ranger continued to click and type. "Fourth floor, cubicle 83. Go! Fourteen seconds." Ranger hit a button to shut down the system. The two men ran through the door into the Detail Room and stopped at the entry. Ranger swiped his card and the door unlocked. A clang and rolling sound drew their attention.

"Shit!" Lester turned and saw the key roll away towards the center of the room.

"Santos!" Lester ran to the center of the room and grabbed the key. Turning on his heels, he bolted for the door and slid across the floor into the inlet chamber. As Ranger clicked the door to the Detail Room, his watch screeched a series of rapid electronic beeps. Lester sat on the floor taking deep breaths, leaning his head against the wall, his legs brought up to his chest.

"You've got to invest in more durable chains, Bro."

Ranger said nothing as he retrieved the iridium key card again.

"I know we're trained and all, but holy shit, my heart is racing!"

"Fuck, Santos. Don't be so dramatic." Ranger pressed the button on his com. "Brown. How's the hall?"

"All clear, Boss."

Ranger looked down at Lester. "Ready?"

They were upon a maze of cubicles and computers that hummed with sleep; waiting for the minions to arrive and work like lemmings staring at the vibrant computer screens for eight hours before returning dormant for anther work day. Waiting for a sound or response to their entry, they stopped. Nothing. Working their way stealthily through the cubicle maze, they arrived at their destination: number 83. Taking action, they began to work. One turned the monitor on and a faint glow illuminated the ceiling, marking their location, he began to work. The other began to search the file cabinets and drawers.

"Do you really think he's that stupid?" Lester asked as he flew across the keyboard.

"Everyone leaves a trail." Ranger acknowledged as he went to another drawer.

"Even you?"

"I'm the exception." He pulled out a file. Disinterested, he moved on to another one.

"Oh, shit." This pulled the attention away from the filing cabinet. "Boss, you were right. Look at this icon. It's a secure back door. This is beyond firewall and secure, this is RangeMan secure."

"Access it."

The keyboard rapidly clicked and several secure screens and prompts later, a new world of information was splayed on the screen. "Fuck me." Both men scanned the material and froze. "Ranger, look. Every fucking file from that secret computer thing." Pointing at the screen the name flashed clearer than the sun in hell.

"Any travel logs?"

Lester began looking for a new access point. "Oh," was all that slipped out. Air transfers and flight schedules arriving and departing from Colombia between DC and Miami. The air in the cubicle became very cold as the men took in this information.

"Is it copied?" There was a slight hesitation. "Santos, do…" Lester nodded and slipped something into the leg of his black cargo pants. "Let's move."

No words were spoken as they stood and returned everything to pre-intrusion state. Quickly retracing their steps, they walked back to the door. A faint click snapped their senses to full alert. Ranger put his hand up and they both stopped.

The door they had previously entered through had just closed and the sound of heels clicking across the tiled floor filled the air. The sound of a cell phone pierced their ears and a woman's voice filled the vacant room. "Hello? Yes, I forgot my IPad. No. Order me a martini. Three minutes tops." The woman could be heard hurriedly grabbing something from her desk. She swore under her breath then quickly made for the door. Several moments after the two men heard the door close, they cautiously moved towards the exit.

"Why the hell didn't you say something?" Lester hissed into his earpiece.

Bobby's voice came through, "I lost her entering the building after you guys scrambled the security cameras. I followed her but she didn't show up on the elevat…" Bobby trailed off and a muffled expletive halted their movements.

Ranger placed his fingers to his ear, his jaw tight and his expression stony. "Brown." He could hear muffled talking and more swearing. "Brown!"

"Ranger,"

"Report!" He hissed.

"Shit, Boss."

000000

The sound of crunching and slurping filled the black Escalade as it eased off the Jersey Turnpike. Cal got the report that Pinkie was holed up in a park on the east side of the turnpike significantly out of town. It was after eight as the black car silently eased to the curb on the backside of the park. Stephanie crumpled the McDonald's bag and leaned across the console.

"Anything?"

Cal shook his head. "We'll wait three minutes to let things settle, then we'll go." Cal pulled out a pair of night vision goggles and scanned the park. Stephanie pulled the yellow pad out and a pen and stared at her original brainstorming sheet.

"Alright, Cal, let's see what we can do." She mouthed the pen and thought.

Cal glanced over and smiled. "Deep thoughts. Del Margino is all you have?" Stephanie gave him a bitch look. "How about starting with what we know?" He resumed look out. "SA's, Paige Walker, can't forget Pinkie." Stephanie wrote the names across the top under Del Margino, and placed the other words at various places on the sheet. "Um, Miami, Slater Garomin, Colombia, Trenton."

"Hmmm, doesn't look any better, Cal. Now it's just a sheet with a bunch of items." Stephanie sighed and ripped the paper off, sliding it into her back pocket.

"Show time." Stephanie nodded and Cal got on the radio. "Big Bird, we have visual, moving in." Cal waited for a response.

"Copy, proceed with caution." Tank's deep voice said.

"We're going silent." They exited the car and Cal turned the speaker off and looked to his partner. "Ok, Steph, we're going to stay low along the brush and come behind Pinkie. He's around those trees on the opposite side."

"Got it."

They proceeded with as much stealth as Stephanie could must. However, she seemed to find most the twigs that would snap under her weight. They arrived at a semi-circle of trees with a small clearing. Settling silently behind a tree they observed Pinkie.

"What the hell is he doing?" Cal whispered as he drew his gun.

Stephanie mimicked his actions and furrowed her brow. Pinkie was standing a short distance away in a clearing nervously checking the area with fleeting glances.

"Cover me. You stay here, Steph." Cal rose and trained his gun on Pinkie encroaching with mercenary precision. As he got closer to Pinkie he continued to scan the trees and brush for movement.

"Freeze."

Pinkie threw his arms in the air and nearly wet his pants at the sight of Cal. A partial look of relief crossed his face as he visibly heaved a sigh of relief.

"Ahhh." His voice drawled out. "It's only you."

"Expecting someone else?" Cal spoke as he scanned the area.

"Does eet matter? I'm already a dead man, Sssir."

"You're a lot more than that, asshole. You're in violation of a bond and the key suspect in the death of one Eddie Rogers. Turn around and keep your hands where I can see them."

Pinkie nodded and turned in compliance, presenting his hands to Cal. Cal placed his gun in the waistband of his pants and nodded to Stephanie. She stepped out from behind the trees and moved towards the two men, gun drawn on Pinkie. Cal was reaching for his cuffs when a flash of light and two muffled 'pops' disturbed the night from the opposite side of the trees.

"Umph! Shit!" Cal stumbled back at the force of the bullet that impacted his vest as it tore through Pinkie. He dropped Pinkie, who collapsed to the ground with a thud. Swiftly reacting and reaching for his gun, he grasped the butt and swung his arm forward in the direction of the shot. Before he could fire a shot, two more pops sounded. Stephanie screamed as Cal fell back and collapsed on top of Pinkie, the gaping hole in Pinkie's chest was a strong indication he was no longer living. Stephanie suddenly became frozen as she stared in horror at the two bodies. Reaching for any form of sense, Stephanie raised a wobbly hand, as level as she could, to the trees.

"Drop it." A voice called from a shadowed figure.

The gun continued to shake recklessly as she tightened her grip.

"You will meet the fate of your friend sooner than later." A strange looking gun gleamed in the moonlight as the figure moved away from the shadow of the trees.

Stephanie's hands fell to her side and her right fingers frantically searched the side of her pants. Feeling the small lump, she pressed firmly into her thigh, praying she held it long enough.

"Keep your damn hands where I can see them."

"You! You bitch!" Stephanie placed her hands in front of her, not making any sudden moves.

"Drop your gun." Paige stepped out into the moonlight, her SA gun trained on Stephanie. Stephanie flicked her eyes to the motionless form of Cal next to the equally lifeless, but bloodier body of Pinkie. She complied and dropped the gun by her feet.

"Killing people's bad for business." Stephanie quipped.

"What the fuck do you know about my business?"

"That you are nothing but a fat lie, just like your ass."

Paige's eyes flashed at Stephanie's remark. "You should have kept your nose out of my business."

"Your business? You were the one that poached my boyfriend!" Stephanie spat.

"And you seemed terribly upset about it too! About as upset as Joe as he had no problem fucking my brains! You've definitely settled in on Manoso well enough. Pity I couldn't feel the same about Joe. It will give me great pleasure to get rid of you and know that I have finally gotten to Manoso the only way that truly hurts."

"W..what are you talking about? This has nothing to do with Ranger!"

"Oh, it has everything. He made me look like a fool!"

"Your image? Are you kidding me?_ Your Image?_" Stephanie felt her voice go up to a shriek.

"He was suppose to take the fall back in Miami when we arrested him, but he altered the fucking information."

"R…Ranger wouldn't do anything like that." Stephanie stammered.

"So you think. Does he always lie to you or just when he wants to fuck you? I _know_ his company altered the information that implicated him because I planted it on him!"

"So it was you? This whole time, you've been running the cartel and working inside."

Paige closed the distance to Stephanie. "Oh, if only it were that easy." Her voice was demonic and her movements serous. "I never ran the cartel; I just made sure I got my portion of the money for the guns."

"So it was your partner?" Stephanie began to feel panic consuming her. Really all she wanted to do was find a bush and hide. '_Oh shit. What am I going to do?'_

"Tanner? Hardly." Paige's jaw clenched and her voice cracked at the mention of his name. "Unfortunately a victim of circumstance. Now, Ms. Plum, you've wasted enough of my time."

"Pull the horse out of your ass, Paige! You think you're just going to kill me then go back to fucking Joe as usual? You really are dumber than shit."

"Hardly! I have no intention of going back to Morelli, I'm not like you. I needed a place lay low until we got everything finalized, and he provided. There's a boat leaving here within the hour and I'm going to be on it." Paige shrugged. "I'll admit, the sex was good, but I've had better. That man gets so caught up with his other head he can't see the devil sleeping next to him."

Stephanie's blood chilled. She recognized the tremor coursing through her body as terror; she stared down the barrel of Paige's weapon and saw glee flash across her green eyes. The slightest movement from the trees caught Stephanie's attention and she jerked her head to the side. Paige's eyes darkened as she followed Stephanie's gaze and a figure moved from behind a tree. She altered her stance so she was to Stephanie's right side and facing the man in the shadows.

"Oh, god." Stephanie whispered. "You're not here to save me, are you?"

"What are _you_ doing here?" Paige spat. "This is my turf."

The man assessed both women. "Not anymore. Everything has been compromised because of you. And don't give me that shit about Tanner meaning nothing. Morelli may mean nothing to you, but Tanner certainly didn't."

"Fuck you." Paige hissed back.

"He was my friend, and your brother. It was supposed to be you who died that night, not him."

Paige blanched but kept her gun trained on Stephanie.

"You slept with your brother? What kind of sick incestual bitch are you?" Stephanie's mouth was open, a disgusted look on her face, her legs shaking.

"Christ, Stephanie! I never slept with my brother!"

The man gave a humorless laugh. "No, but you sure gave the impression you were more than close, as only I knew the true connection. Apparently, Tanner thought much more highly of you than himself. Pity. I really liked him and I've been doing damage control ever since. Thankfully, this little meeting has now given me the perfect opportunity to eliminate the remaining threads of the plan."

"What threads? You may have taken credit for the other killings, but I took care of the last man." Paige's face was turning pink with anger.

"Thank you for taking care of Mr. Chavez. He was a wily one. I almost suspected he wouldn't be caught. But one more cleanup remains. I don't want the trail to be followed any further."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Paige spat. "There's no one left. I'm too good to leave a trail." Paige spat.

"On the contrary. You got careless! You were so caught up in your revenge you couldn't see everything collapsing around you. You didn't notice Manoso closing in. Then you send Morelli into RangeMan to contact Pinkie? They have the information on South America. It's only a matter of time before they put everything together."

"I'm careless? You shouldn't have accessed the information! You call yourself a leader? Why didn't you just sell the information to a Girl Scout?"

"The information was secure. I needed the information to monitor Manoso's mission statuses and the operations sent down to Colombia! You were too busy lying on your back and spreading your legs instead of walking around and doing your job!"

"I did my job!"

"If you did your job I wouldn't be here!"

"I brought you up here!" Paige's look hardened and she pulled a Sig from behind her back.

The man stood bemused by the new addition to the conversation. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Look at you. Finally deciding to kill people and getting ready to leave town without a good-bye?"

"It's not like that." Paige said. Stephanie stood still and wide-eyed, she moved her hand up her leg and felt the button again, not wanting to make any sudden movements.

"Oh, but it is. I didn't realize why you were so adamant about getting into RangeMan. It was to draw Pinkie out. Had Morelli not mentioned that bit of information, I never would have known you were planning to double crossing me. I knew I couldn't trust you. Especially after your brother died." The man shook his head. "You are sloppy, and too expensive." The voice was eerily sadistic. With rapid speed and the flick of a wrist, the cool steel of the blade flashed as it caught the moonlight and struck its target. Stephanie gasped as Paige let out a sickening groan. Her grip loosened on the guns and dropped to the ground; her hands flew to her throat grasping the handle of the knife. Blood pulsed from her neck at the entry site, spraying Stephanie.

"You b..b..bas..grrrrd." With a sickening gurgle, Paige collapsed to the ground joining the two other bodies. Her milky skin turned deep crimson. Her hands went limp and her head fell to the side; her vacant green eyes stared at nothing.

Stephanie's eyes widened with horror. Unsuccessfully, she tried to move backwards away from Paige and away from her murderer. But with three bodies heaped on the ground, Stephanie's brain couldn't communicate with her legs.

"Ahh, Ms. Plum. Where do you think you're going?" His voice was smooth and slippery like a snake, his movements controlled and fluid.

Stephanie froze, the terror coursing through her churned her stomach and physically made her ill. Bending over, she directed her vomit towards the lifeless form of Paige. "Oh, god." She whimpered.

"Turn around." He commanded.

Obeying, Stephanie gave him her back and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, closing her eyes tight. She felt a hand slip down the back of her pants as he remove the tracker Cal had placed earlier. He turned her around and smiled.

"Empty your pockets and discard your weapons. I will know if you don't empty everything. Just drop them right there." He pointed at the pile of bodies.

Stephanie removed the knife from her leg and dropped it next to Cal. Retaining eye contact, she reached into her right pocket and squeezed the panic button again as she pulled it out and tossed it on Paige. Reaching into her other pockets she removed a tube of chapstick, a tissue, a small bag of Skittles, and a pen, dropping all the items. Reaching into her back pocket, she removed the folded piece of paper from earlier and broke the eye contact, staring wide-eyed at the paper. Her voice betrayed her and she unfolded it and read out loud.

"Slater Garomin…Garomin…Garo." Stephanie inhaled sharply and she felt a hand under her chin tilt her head up. She flinched at the gesture and her fearful eyes met the black ones of the devil himself. "Del Margino." She whispered.

"Clever don't you think?"

"R…R...Ranger's not going to be happy with you." The paper fluttered to the ground.

"And why is that, querida?" He tightened his grip on her shoulder and gave her a handsome demonic smile.

"He wanted to kill her himself." The last thing Stephanie heard was the demonic laugh of Slater.

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**Please, share your joy? I would love for you to make my day as I'm sure I just made yours!**


	33. Chapter 33

*****I was really good the past couple of weeks and knew I was going to fall off the wagon with this posting. Thank you all for the overwhelming response to the last chapter and Paige's death. I gathered there were no tears shed. ) I know I told most of you that I would have it up last Friday, but I had far too much school work. Next week, I'll tell you now, is going to be terrible as it is my final week of school. I got into grad school officially for the fall so it's been worth it! Enjoy this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: _Huge_ language warning- Ranger is pissed, he's a military man, not a saint. And Joe is never kind when he's around Ranger*****

Previously...

_"R…R...Ranger's not going to be happy with you." The paper fluttered to the ground._

_"And why is that, querida?" He tightened his grip on her shoulder and gave her a handsome demonic smile._

_"He wanted to kill her himself." The last thing Stephanie heard was the demonic laugh of Slater._

* * *

He felt it. Suddenly, with cold realization, shooting him at point blank, he knew it. Ranger pushed the feeling aside and snapped into mercenary mode.

"Oh shit, Boss." Came Bobby's voice.

"Damn it, Brown, I don't need cryptics." Ranger whispered as he and Lester checked the hall for movement.

Bobby cleared his throat, "It's Bomber…"

"Santos, move!" The two men sprinted down the hall. "Brown, just keep the cameras clean. ETA 43 seconds."

Lester and Ranger took the stairs at record pace. Jumping over the rails, they cleared each floor by landing on the lower platforms until they reached the bottom of the stairwell. Lester knew the look on Ranger's face, he had seen it many times before whilst undertaking death missions. They reached the door that said 'EXIT' and shot out the back of the building. At a dead run the two black figures were a blur as they crossed the lawn, parking lot, and street, and reached the black Suburban parked in the shadows opposite the main entry of the building. Ranger threw the door open, his eyes black with fury as Bobby turned around and bit his cheek. For the last 41 seconds, he was contemplating how exactly to tell Ranger what happened.

"Report." Ranger gave him a death stare. Lester leaned slightly on the door, taking a few deep breaths. He kept pace with Ranger, but Ella had been rather kind to him the last few weeks, and his workouts had been less than efficient. Ranger stood glaring at Bobby as a list of numbers came up on the screen. Each was a time date sequence of the panic button on Stephanie. Ranger's breath was even and calm as if he had just walked to the bathroom from the sofa.

"I didn't know until it was hit a second time." Bobby explained. "I was doing the Fed cameras. That's why I lost that bureau chick that came in. Well, and your scrambling the cameras and…"

Ranger's eyes narrowed. "Where is she?"

"Tracker indicates Steph is at a park off the Turnpike." Bobby said.

"Who's there now?"

"Um…aside from Cal? Uh…" Bobby cleared his throat again, "uh, no one."

"Why the fuck not?"

"It's almost 35 minutes from RangeMan!"

"Maybe if you drive the speed limit."

"One team dispatched at the first full panic call about 10 minutes ago. They're hauling ass, Boss; ETA eleven minutes. The rest of the teams dispatched three minutes ago."

"They're not hauling fast enough. Shit!" Ranger moved to step into the vehicle, "We're wasting time, let's go." Suddenly, the whir of a high performance engine broke through their conversation. A black 911 pulled next to the Suburban and both doors opened. Leaving the engine running, Tank stepped out of the driver's side and Woody exited from the passenger door. Woody jumped into the Suburban and Tank walked around to the passenger side of the Turbo, nodding to Ranger.

Ranger stepped around the door and gave a look to his men. "Santos, give Woody the stick to prep all the information. Brown, haul ass." Closing the door, the tires burned at least two inches of rubber as he released the clutch and fishtailed down the street.

Bobby quickly followed suit as he sped out of the parking lot, barely glimpsing Ranger's taillights as the Turbo sped around the corner towards the freeway. Lester handed over the USB stick and Woody quickly got to work.

"What the hell happened?" Lester asked.

000000

Dodging cars and driving with reckless abandon, Ranger hit the I-195 onramp in record time, driving towards the Turnpike. The gears changed fast as he made his way down the long cemented stretch.

"What the fuck happened, Tank?"

Tank eyed his friend and raised an eyebrow as they swerved around a fuel tanker. "Stephanie and Cal went to get Pinkie. I had contact as they received their first visual, then we went silent. Steph had the new Y73 panic button. She hit it once, then fully activated it 32 seconds later. She hit it again four minutes later, then fully activated it again two and a half minutes later. One team was already dispatched after the first activation. With the second activation, all RangeMen, less three, were sent out almost five minutes ago."

"Why didn't you respond?"

"Don't give me that shit, Carlos. You know I follow orders. Even yours."

"Convoy?"

"Four vehicles, Boss. No contact from Cal or Steph."

Ranger rapidly decelerated as he approached the tollbooths. "Shit." Scanning the lanes, he pulled around the shoulder of waiting cars and sped through a fastpass lane. Shouts and screams were heard as the Turbo burst through to the other side. Tank was thrown to the side of the car as Ranger took the large circular turn onto the Turnpike. Ranger blew past a group of motorcycles as he rounded the final stretch. He reached 95mph shooting onto the smooth pavement and past the first of several black vehicles ahead. They rapidly encroached on the remaining black vehicles, passing each one like they were parked. Quickly hitting sixth gear, the Turbo was in its element, well over triple digits as the RangeMan convoy disappeared in the review mirror.

Ranger glanced at his watch, keeping his look of determination, seven minutes. '_Seven minutes wasted in trying to get to my Babe.'_

"Making good time Carlos." Tank said as he glanced at the speedometer. It read 163. "It's all straight from here, man, don't you think you should open it up?"

The Turbo lurched forward and the RPM's shot red as Ranger dropped down into fifth and pressed the accelerator. The dashes in the road were now a single white line as they sped forward and again hit sixth, the Turbo purring comfortably.

As they pulled off the Turnpike, Ranger passed a black Hummer with Vince behind the wheel. He flashed his lights and they made haste to the park. Ranger whipped in next to Cal's Escalade, throwiwng his door open and pulling his Beretta from his pants. Tank looked at the little device in his hand and pointed just over a knoll towards some trees. The Hummer stopped on the other side of the Turbo, and Vince, Zero, and Junior jumped out, guns drawn.

"What took you so long?" Ranger calmly whispered, a look of death in his eyes. Vince shook his head and lowered it, he knew he should have driven faster.

Ranger turned towards the trees and everyone followed suit. The men assaulted the trees, scoping the area for signs of movement. As they walked through the trees, Ranger held his hand up. Everyone stopped. There in the clearing was a heap of bodies. Ranger eyed them and took a shallow breath as he stepped forward, assessing the environment. Acknowledging the safety of the situation, he moved forward, followed by the rest of the men. Guns pointed at the bodies, Ranger drew in a breath.

"Fuck,"

Ranger knelt down and tilted the head towards him with the barrel of his gun. Paige's glassy eyes revealed nothing. Her clothes were soaked through with blood. Ranger smacked a fist down onto her stomach. "Bastard got to her first. Mother fucker."

"God, what's that smell?" Zero asked looking around.

A small twitch registered on Ranger's lips. "Looks like someone barfed on Walker. Never disappoints." Ranger nodded to Tank and they moved Paige to the side. "Search her." Junior and Vince pulled gloves out of their pockets and got to work searching Paige. Tank and Ranger flipped the other body over and Tank let out a small groan.

"Cal." Tank whispered. "That blood his or that guy's?" He pointed to the very mangled form of Pinkie.

"Zero, check out Pinkie." Zero nodded at Ranger's command.

Ranger ran his hand across Cal's neck and waited. He gave Tank an affirmative nod. "Junior, find out when Brown's going to arrive." Ranger ripped Cal's shirt open and revealed his vest.

"Fuck, those things went straight through, man." Tank commented. The sound of tires squealing indicated the encroaching arrival of RangeMan.

"Not these two. Look," Ranger pointed to the vest where two bullets were imbedded.

"Yeah, but what about the blood?" Tank said.

Ranger ripped the Velcro strap and removed Cal's vest. "Shit. Tank, apply pressure to his side. The vest helped some." Ranger slapped Cal's face. "Hey." Ranger slapped him again, "Cal, you shit, wake up." Several RangeMen were now coming across the knoll towards the scene. "Secure the area. Find anything." Ranger barked orders. Reaching into his pocket, he retrieved a small plastic vial. He broke the top off and ran it under Cal's nose.

"Uhhhhg." Cal turned his head. "My side hurts."

"Suck it up, soldier. What happened?"

"Ranger? Stephanie!" Cal went to sit up, then coiled over. "Oooh, fff…ouch." Another vehicle arrived and doors slammed, followed by a few shouts.

"Cal,"

"Oh, god," Cal moaned. "We were getting Pinkie. He said he was already dead. Then, we were fired on, Boss." Cal winced as Tank continued to apply pressure. RangeMen were weaving in and out of trees, beginning to assemble around Cal, Ranger and Tank. "Pink took two. Went straight through him and hit me. Looks like they didn't go all the way through, however, the bitch fired again. Caught one on the side, and another in the arm. Shit, it stings. These vests worked, Boss." Cal smiled and set his head on the grass. "Just not where there was no protection."

"Stephanie." Ranger said.

"I blacked…" Cal grunted and closed his eyes.

"Shit." Ranger whispered.

Bobby, Lester, and Woody arrived at the scene. Bobby quickly knelt down next to Cal and began taking vitals. "Step away, Ranger. Let me look him over."

Ranger stood and looked at the items between Paige and Cal. "What do you got, men?"

His men closed the circle tighter around Ranger.

Vince stood and pointed to the ground. "Chapstick, Skittles, gun, knife, tissues, both trackers. Shit, man, no sign of Steph."

"Maybe she ran into hiding." Zip said.

Ranger looked at the items on the ground and clenched his jaw. "Highly unlikely."

"Then where the fuck is she?" Vince asked, arms crossed.

"Um, Boss?" Zero handed over a piece of yellow paper. "Found this over by a tree."

Ranger scanned over the paper he had seen earlier that evening with the header 'Del Margino.' The corner of his mouth twitched that Stephanie had realized the connection too, noticing Slater's name on the sheet.

Ranger snapped into commander mode. "Alright men. We are putting out a full RangeMan alert. Stephanie is alive, there is no otherwise. She has been taken by Del Margino himself."

"You're kidding?" Ram piped in.

"The man don't kid, now shut up." Lester said. Sirens screamed in the distance, drawing closer.

Ranger continued, his voice commanding and deadly, "Stephanie is in Del Margino's possession, I have no doubt, but we do not know his intentions, or, for the moment, where they are heading. We also know what he looks like. Most of you may know him as Slater Garomin. What is the status on Stephanie's trackers?"

Soft murmurs exchanged between the men. Ranger looked over to Woody who shook his head. "I'm sorry. I got nothing, Boss. All her trackers say she's right here," he pointed to the bodies, "or at RangeMan, and we know she's not there."

Lester placed a hand on Ranger's shoulder. "We have no other way of tracking her, Ranger. Where do we start?"

"We go back to RangeMan." Everyone exchanged looks, but no one spoke. "There is one more way to find her, but it is not here." Brilliant lights began to strobe the park. Ranger looked towards the parking lot, his jaw set tight. "Brown, I'm going to need you. Junior, Zip, see that Cal is taken to the hospital."

"Boss, we can't move him, he's already gone into shock once." Bobby stated as he looked over at Cal. "He needs an ambulance."

"Junior, Zip, see that he is taken to the hospital. Head back to RangeMan when he's admitted. Let's do it."

"Boss," Cal moaned. Ranger turned to Cal. "It…it's all in my car." Ranger stared at him. Cal tapped his chin under his ear and laid his head back on the grass. His breathing was gradually slowing as his eyes rolled back. Bobby continued to work on him, preventing him from going into shock again.

"Zero, pull the audio feed off Cal's Escalade on the way back. Woody, finish everything for the debriefing on the Fed building." Everyone nodded. "RangeMan. Double time!"

They took suit after Ranger, and they all fanned out and crested the hill like some slow motion action movie. The 15 RangeMen looked like a team of bad ass mercenaries marching in for the kill, minus the sniper rifles and .55cal. Several police cars were in the parking lot and an ambulance. State and Trenton cops were patrolling the lot and raised their guns as the black clad men descended to their cars.

"Manoso," A voice called.

Ranger turned his head to see Arnie walking towards him.

"Rupp,"

Arnie waved down the guns. "What the hell is going on? I've received reports of a black Porsche bursting through a tollbooth and traveling at a high rate of speed as well as several other black vehicles."

"You'll get my brief later. You'll find some of your answers just over that hill." Ranger pointed over his shoulder as he walked to the Turbo.

"Manoso,"

"We have a situation, and I cannot dedicate any time to you. I'll call you when we assess the need for assistance."

"Ranger…I'll stall them as long as I can." Arnie nodded as Ranger jogged to his car. Tank was waiting for him in the passenger side.

"Manoso!"

Ranger stopped and swore under his breath.

"What the hell is going on here?" A thoroughly pissed off Joe Morelli stepped between him and his Turbo.

"I believe your supervisor has this under control."

"Hell he does! What are you doing here?"

"None of your damn business. Excuse me." Ranger placed his hand on Joe's shoulder and shoved him to the side. Tank's door opened and he stepped out.

"Fuck off, Manoso! Where do you think you're going?"

"To more important things."

Joe glared at him.

"Got it, Boss!" Zero called from Cal's car. Ranger nodded to him.

"You're wasting my time, Morelli."

"Where's Stephanie?"

Ranger turned. "Since when are you concerned about her well being you cocky prick?" Ranger felt his lip twitch. "Besides, your girlfriend's here."

"Hell she is. She's back at home, sick."

"Perhaps you better keep a shorter leash. She's waiting for you on the other side of the hill." Ranger walked into him and hit him hard with his shoulder.

"Fuck you." Joe spat.

Ranger ignored him and slid into the Turbo, bringing the engine to life.

"Boy is he gonna get a surprise." Tank smiled.

"We have 30 seconds to vacate the premise." Ranger pulled out and turned towards the Turnpike. As the Turbo sped passed the other black vehicles his cell rang. He read the display and smiled, ignoring the call.

"Morelli?" Tank asked.

Ranger said nothing, so Tank took that as an affirmative. "How we gonna find Bomber, Boss?"

"I have my ways." Ranger commented as he swerved around a vehicle.

"Care to enlighten me?"

"Tracker."

"But we already ran her trackers."

"I have one more." Ranger said from his zone. His face was hard as he sped along the Turnpike.

"You do?"

"Not that you or anyone else knows about."

Tank raised an eyebrow at his friend. "Why can't we access it now?"

"It's small and has a limited range. I have the only device linked to her tracker and I don't keep it on me at all times for…ethical reasons."

"She doesn't even know about it, does she?"

"You mean Stephanie?"

Tank nodded.

"No. She wouldn't have taken them had she known the truth."

"Fuck, you put it in those pretty little earrings, didn't you?"

Ranger switched lanes and Tank chuckled. "You one smart fucker, man. You know that? One smart fucker."

000000

Slater smiled at the limp form next to him that bounced with the waves as the boat sped down the river. The addition of Stephanie Plum was more than welcome.

"Ahh, querida," Slater stroked her pale cheek as he decelerated and maneuvered the boat. "You will bring me the true prize." A large barge loomed in the distance and he lined his small craft up to the dock, pulling expertly in front of the barge.

Several men ran to the boat, rapidly speaking in Spanish.

"Del Margino." One bowed his head to Slater. Slater hopped out of the boat and wiped his slick black hair off his face. He exchanged words with the arrivals and directed two men to remove Stephanie.

"Hand her to me." Slater threw her over his shoulder and walked up to the dock. A metal gangway swelled up and down with the waves as it attached to the barge. Slater proceeded up the ramp, Stephanie's head bobbed up and down with his hurried steps. Once onboard, Slater snapped his right hand and the gangway was removed from the side of the barge. Over a dozen men stood around greeting their boss. He shook their hands and relished in the veneration. Slowly, the barge began to move away from the dock under the direction of a tug. He smiled at his success and dismissed his loyal minions. Feeling movement against his back, he pulled Stephanie forward.

"Ahh, I see you are coming to. Sorry, about the drug, it was a necessary precaution. You were easier to move and much more cooperative."

Stephanie rolled her head forward and brought Slater into focus. She moaned and scrunched her face. "God, this is worse than I thought."

"Corina, we haven't even started." A devilish smile flashed across his face. "Are you going to behave? Or do I need to provide you with a calming agent?"

Stephanie swallowed and shook her head. Slater reached out and grabbed Stephanie's hair, shoving her forward. "Move."

"Ranger." She whispered.

000000

Within fifteen minutes, all vehicles were back at RangeMan. Ranger commanded orders as they rode the elevator to five, he continued up to seven. All the men were sitting in the control room as Woody pulled up a large screen, waiting for Ranger to return.

"Don't you think the boss is being a little too calm about this?" Lester whispered to Tank.

"You know as well as me that he can't lose his cool on this. _Especially_ with Stephanie involved. He's been waiting for this for over three years."

"Yeah, but generally, when he's this calm, it's a toss up on when he snaps. I've got 100 bucks in the pool that says it happens before we leave."

"Ranger doesn't get emotional, now would be a hell of a time to start." Tank rubbed his bald head. "Trust what he's doing."

Ranger walked across the floor of his apartment and knelt down in front of the coffee table. Pushing it aside, he fingered the carpet and pulled up a strip, revealing a safe dial and a small screen on a cool black surface. He placed his thumb on the screen. When the small scan finished and his identity was confirmed, the combination dial unlocked allowing it to spin freely. Working the combination, he heard the soft click as the safe door popped open. Ranger scanned the items in the recessed container. He reached for a small black and silver handheld device and paused as he went to stand. He knelt back down and ran two fingers over a picture with a familiar face. The blue eyes were piercing, even in the photograph. Ranger stood and set his jaw. He closed the safe with his foot and pressed the 'on' button on the device he was holding. He watched as it began its warm up process. An hourglass on the screen flipped over and over. A map of the world now showed, and a timer read 4:59:53. The right number rapidly counted backward from 59 to 0 continuing the cycle as the middle number decreased. '_Five minutes. Fuck.'_ Clenching the device in his hand, he let out a strong breath to expel his fury and regain his control. "It's time."

Ranger stepped off onto five and all talking stopped. Woody had all the information extracted from the memory stick and displayed on the wall.

Ram stood, "Boss, the phones are ringing off the hook with the cops. They're pissed."

"They'll deal with it."

Everyone nodded and waited as Ranger began.

"We infiltrated the Federal building this evening and extracted this information from an on site computer." He pointed to the screen. "Turns out the computer belonged to Slater Garomin." Slater's picture came on the screen. "For those you who don't know, Garomin is Del Margino. He worked South American relations with ATF. He would steal secret government operations and travel out of Columbia to avoid detection for months at a time. His background has been completely altered, and he was very inside to avoid detection. Slater is our target. Stephanie is our primary concern." Ranger looked at his watch. "I believe we have approximately nine minutes before police are swarming outside this building."

"How do you plan on leaving here then, Boss?" Vince asked.

Ranger didn't give Vince and answer, he instead looked past Vince's shoulder.

"Zero. Audio?"

Zero nodded and the sound of Stephanie and Cal filled the room. Shots fired and Stephanie screamed, the reel continued.

"Stop the audio." Ranger commanded. "Play that part again."

"_You really are dumber than shit."_

"_Hardly! I have no intention of going back to Morelli, I'm not like you. I needed a place lay low until we got everything finalized, and he provided. There's a boat leaving here within the hour and I'm going to be on it. I'll admit, the sex…"_

"That's it." Ranger pointed to Hal, "Access the Jersey Port records and find out what," Ranger looked at his watch, "left in the last 30 minutes."

A loud beeping sound pulled Ranger's attention. He reached into his pocket and removed the device.

"Boss?" Lester questioned.

"Fuck! Last receivable location of Stephanie was the Cape May Terminal."

"What would she be doing down there?"

Ranger thought for a moment. "With a fast boat, you could make it down there out of Trenton in around 30 minutes. She's out of range, meaning, she's floating somewhere."

"Ranger, there was a barge that left Cape May at 2100." Hal yelled.

Ranger's eyes darkened, wrath was brewing under the surface, no one dared speak.

"Zero, you are in charge of the cops that will be here in the next three minutes. Do not tell them anything, I will make them aware of the situation. I don't want any police fucking this thing up. I don't need a bunch of rule book pushers compromising Stephanie."

Zero nodded.

"When Morelli comes, you can do as you please."

This got a grin and "Yes, sir," out of Zero.

"Woody, contact Stone Harbor."

Woody nodded.

"Have them ready the Stiletto."

Woody gulped. "Stiletto, Sir?"

"I didn't stutter."

"I uh, thought that was only a government prototype?"

Ranger just stared, "Just because the military doesn't jump on something functional doesn't mean I can't have one. Are you fucking going to make the fucking call?"

Tank placed a hand on Ranger's shoulder. "Calm the fuck down, Carlos." He imperceptibly whispered in his ear. "Woody, Stone Harbor. Boat. Now."

Ranger stood off to the side watching Woody comply, arms folded. Tank turned around and shoved Ranger into his office, closing the door.

"I'm your right hand man, Carlos. But don't think that I won't beat your ass unconscious." Tank said in a deadly voice. "We are all concerned about Stephanie. Don't think this is only privy to you." He jabbed a finger into Ranger's chest. Ranger stood stone faced, staring at his massive friend. "Now. Are you going to utilize all that training that got us in this mess? Or am I going to have to chain that ass of yours to the floor in one of our holding cells in the basement? So help me I _will_ do it!"

Ranger kept his arms tight and clenched his jaw. The muscles bouncing up his cheeks. "You're right."

"Damn straight I am!" Tank bellowed, his stance all business. "Get your fucking shit together soldier or after I'm done with you I'll ship your ass back to Cuba!"

Ranger lifted his chin up. Tank saw all emotion evaporate from his friend and any emotions that betrayed his mask were replaced with fire and vengeance. "Fuck this shit."

"Yeah. Fuck this shit." Tank agreed.

Ranger slapped his friend on the back and walked out of his office in Ranger mercenary mode. His eyes maintained their fire. No one was going to fuck with him.

"Alpha, Beta, let's move. Hector, you too." His Alpha and Beta teams stood on command. "Prep now! Basement."

Tank, Lester, Bobby, Ram, Vince, Hal, and Hector moved into action to gather guns and the necessary artillery. As the muscled men walked to the elevator, Bobby and Hal each handed Lester a hundred dollar bill. Tank smacked Lester on the back of the head. Lester raised his eyebrows at Tank and grinned as he pocketed the two hundred dollars.

Ranger stood in the elevator facing the control room. He stuck his arm out and held the door.

"Slick," Ranger called. Slick popped his head up.

"Call the chopper."

000000

**Vengeful Ranger is my absolute favorite, so stay tuned. Now that he has his act together, it's time to show his wrath. I enjoy hearing your responses to the chapters! Thank you so much for reviewing! I broke 300 with the last chapter, so you all made my week!**


	34. Chapter 34

*****I know it disrupts the story with the distance between updates, but what can I say? Grad school's a you-know-what! But I can say that I got a 4.0 this term! Yay me! So, your thorns and tomatoes are understood, but I'm pretty darn giddy and hope you all understood! Since I got my grades today, I figured I would reward with a new chapter. I hope you all like it. I really struggled with a result I could be happy with and suddenly it all came together, and I'm pretty darn happy about it. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Joe's got a potty mouth and it needs to be washed out with soap! Language warning still in major effect. I also don't get any money for stealing JE's characters. Oh well.*****

Previously...

_Tank, Lester, Bobby, Ram, Vince, Hal, and Hector moved into action to gather guns and the necessary artillery. As the muscled men walked to the elevator, Bobby and Hal each handed Lester a hundred dollar bill. Tank smacked Lester on the back of the head. Lester raised his eyebrows at Tank and grinned as he pocketed the two hundred dollars._

_Ranger stood in the elevator facing the control room. He stuck his arm out and held the door._

_"Slick," Ranger called. Slick popped his head up._

_"Call the chopper."_

* * *

Fuming with anger, Joe watched the black Porsche tear into the street and disappear. "I should throw your fucking ass in jail, Manoso. Think you're something special?" Joe spit at the ground and turned on his heels and walked over the hill. The sounds of shouts quickened his steps. Eddie stepped in his path.

"Hold up there, Joe. I don't think you should be here." Eddie placed a hand on Joe's chest, stopping his progress.

"What are you talking about Gazarra?" Joe looked over Eddie's shoulder. His eyes darkened.

"Manoso said Paige was here."

Eddie's face took on a grim purse and he awkwardly tilted his head.

"Get the fuck out of my way." Joe pushed past Eddie and ran down the small hill to where Arnie was conducting orders. Yellow police tape was already being strung around the trees "securing" the police site.

"…and call the coroner. I know he's busy at the other site, maybe you can pull one from coun…" Arnie was disrupted by the arrival of a very pissed off Joe. Arnie swore under his breath. The situation was quickly deteriorating with the arrival of Detective Morelli. All too soon the situation would be lost from his control. He saw a wizened man approaching over the hill and Arnie pulled out his cell and dialed. Unfortunately, there was no answer and it went to voicemail.

"Arnie, what's…" Joe stilted as he took in the scene behind Arnie. Joe scanned the enclosed area and he froze when his eyes settled on a familiar reddish hue highlighted by the police flood lights. Recognition slapped him in the face as his brain registered the lifeless, petite form of Paige. "Oh my god!"

Joe shoved Arnie out of the way as he ran to the bloody body. He collapsed to his knees, grasping Paige's body. A primal scream filled the night air. Joe pulled the limp body closer to his chest. "FUCK!"

Fellow officers stopped their activities as Joe lifted Paige's head. Her vacant stare looked at Joe the same as it did Ranger. Anguish coursed through his body, his heart aching with a pain he had never before experienced. _'Was this what losing love feels like?'_ A strong hand on his shoulder pulled Joe away from his thoughts. He stared into the steely eyes of Chief Larson, who grimaced and stood. Joe said nothing. His eyes began to sting with anger and realization.

"This is all Manoso's doing." His voice came out as a venomous whisper. No one said anything as Joe began his tirade. "He did this." He rubbed Paige's hair and inhaled her scent, the smell of death, vomit, and blood overwhelming, a pained groan escaped. "Why do you think he left? Huh?" He said loudly to anyone who would listen. Officers shifted uneasily from one foot to the next. "Why do you think he and his goons fled like cowards?"

"Because they had something more important to do!" Arnie interjected.

"Fuck they did! He killed her!" Joe shook his head and felt his temper escalating out of control.

"We don't know that. Jesus, listen to yourself!" Arnie interjected. The Chief leaned over and whispered into Arnie's ear. His face paled. He closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Hell you don't!" Joe spat out icily. "She was my partner. I…I…"

"How do we know that it was Ranger that killed Walker? Huh? We don't!" Arnie's patience was wearing thin. One of their own was dead, again. And now the Chief was here? This was turning into one major clusterfuck, and Arnie prayed that Ranger and his men had a decent head start. Even though the Chief trusted Ranger, Arnie knew Larson had to follow protocol. _'We have to,' _Larson had whispered. Ricardo Carlos Manoso was a valued and trusted, though questionable, resource of the department, but when all the evidence points your way and you flee the scene of a murder involving a cop? Well…friendship be damned: you're fucked.

"Manoso killed my partner, you asshole. And you're going to stand there and defend him? Oh, god!" He hugged Paige tighter to his chest.

Arnie felt his testosterone go into overdrive. "Don't you stand there and blindly accuse, Detective! It wasn't Manoso!" He lunged towards Joe.

Chief Larson placed a stiff hand against Arnie's chest. The Chief's eyes said everything and more. "I'm sorry." He whispered softly to Arnie.

"I loved her! He killed her!" Joe dropped Paige as he stood, ignoring the murmurs from everyone nearby. He approached the two men, his hands marked with Paige's blood, balled into fists at his side, storming like a rhino.

"Enough!" Larson yelled. Rupp and Morelli were facing off like ravaged steaming bulls. "Shit. Morelli, calm down. I know this is hard. I do."

Joe visibly heaved a large sigh and clenched his jaw, wiping his hands on his pants, his white shirt was marked with Paige's crimson blood.

"Morelli, where's Slater?"

"Sir, I don't know. I…I can't get a hold of him. Um, he said, he left us around three after the morgue. Said, um, shit, ah, said that he had a meeting at four. I haven't heard from him since."

"Fine. Keep trying." He turned and raised his voice, "Everyone, listen up! We have the coroner coming, the media is just arriving, and we are very exposed. I will handle the media." Larson gave Rupp a chagrined look, "Morelli, I'm sorry for the loss of your partner, we will bring those responsible for this heinous scene to justice. Everyone, our main witness is…"

"Don't you mean _suspect_?" Joe interrupted.

Larson cleared his throat, "Our main witness is Carlos Manoso. He needs to be brought in for questioning. Report came in that he is en route to his RangeMan company on Haywood. Go!"

Joe gave Arnie one last glare and sprinted over the hill to his vehicle. Peeling out of the parking lot as he slapped on his kojak light, he quickly hit the freeway followed by five squad cars with their lights flashing rapidly.

"Chief!" Arnie called. Larson paused and sucked in his lip. "This is wrong. I saw him, I spoke to him!"

Larson looked at the media frenzy swarming the parking lot. He looked to the darkened sky and sighed. "Manoso will understand. He can handle anything."

"It's still not right!" Arnie hissed.

"Shit, Rupp. Sometimes the right thing to do isn't the right thing to do, but I'm bound. We have one dead officer and one dead wanted man laying in the middle of a park. One shot, one stabbed, and everything points to Manoso. What am I supposed to do? I know it's not right, but it's protocol. Manoso is too good to leave a trail, he'll be fine."

"Too good or not, his urgency was beyond anything we can handle, and he wouldn't just leave. Shit, he doesn't flee a scene when someone's dead, whether he killed them or not! Morelli already arrested him once this past month. Manoso was waiting for us at the Glametta scene!"

"You think I don't know this? I have-no-choice. This city is in an uproar! One dead cop already, now another, and the gun problem on top of it?"

Arnie sadly shook his head, "I still don't agree with your decision."

"Duly noted." Larson folded his arms. "But we need to give them something." Larson stated throwing his head towards the news cameras.

"Give 'em Morelli."

Larson scoffed, "I wish. I'm afraid that this is going to be going a lot deeper than any of us want to admit." He gave Arnie one last sad smile. "I'm sorry." He turned and walked over the hill and Arnie watched him approach the media wagons. He could hear the shouts and questions already.

Arnie looked at his watch then back to the bodies. With the arrival of the coroner, the rabbit was soon going to be out of the bag. Larson would definitely have his plate full. Arnie shook his head and walked back to the cordoned area. Ducking under the yellow police tape, he resumed temporary authority over the scene. Shooting off commands, he spent a long unemotional moment gazing over the lifeless form of Paige. He rubbed a hand over his bristly face, "Shit. I sure hope you know what you're doing, Manoso."

000000

The sounds of Velcro ripping and gun chambers clicking filled the spacious room as the eight men prepared for their departure. Blank faces were in place, but the air filled with urgency and tension. Ranger strapped on his vest and secured his two firearms. He turned to the wall behind him and took in a deep breath through his nose. On the outside, his men would see nothing but his Army determination and training. On the inside, he felt something he had experienced once before while engaging in a mission. His heart pained. He felt…emotions. He felt constricted with each thought of Stephanie's condition. Uncertainty was not his friend.

As he reached for a new clip, the cool metal on his fingers stunned him and flashed him back.

"_Emotions are for the weak and vulnerable soldier!"_

_Carlos looked up at his Captain. His stern face and weathered features exemplified his wizened military state. He was a man far removed from remorse and emotion. His first mission being an Army Ranger, Carlos was barely nineteen and known as Scrap. Though he was now one of the more muscular men in the unit, his punk attitude and small stature at basic earned him his nickname. As he kneeled next to the mangled remains of a small child and glanced around at the other pieces of several more, he felt something he had never felt before, and it showed in his face and eyes. The intel on the location of the Burmese insurgent camp had been accurate. However, they were completely unaware of the child chemical testings the enemy was conducting underneath the main building. The Ranger company observed from a hill in the lush vegetation for three days, unmoved and undetected, before painting their target for elimination. The planes came in and carpeted the location. They were successful at eliminating the encampment and were doing their final contact sweep._

"_Do you hear me? We can't do what we do if we are emotionally involved, Soldier." Captain Carter ordered._

"_Yes, Sir." Carlos responded._

"_What's that, Scrap?"_

"_Sir,_ y_es, Sir!"_

"_We don't have sissy emotions! We don't feel! We don't cry!"_

"_Yes, Sir!"_

"_We don't second guess! We save lives! Understand, Scrap?"_

"_Sir, yes, Sir!"_

"_We pick up all our tracks and move on, soldier! No ties!"_

"_Sir, yes, Sir!"_

"_We don't stop and question our intentions! In this shit hole, it's every man for himself!"_

_Suddenly, a fresh wave of gunshots filled the air and the Captain crumbled before Carlos, collapsing to the ground. The six other members of his team alerted and returned fire. Several rebels were retaliating. The Rangers continued to fire, retreating for the bushes, slinking back to their rendezvous point and waiting chopper._

"_Fuck you, Captain." Carlos said as he bent down and scooped up his superior officer. "Every man for himself my ass." Throwing him over his back, he returned fire as he retreated to safety. Reinforcements neutralized the rest of the enemy. Though over one hundred children's lives were taken, they saved thousands of future lives from deformity and death. Four days later, Carlos was called into the med ward at base camp in Germany._

_Carlos informed the nurse of his arrival and she graciously allowed him into the room. He approached the bed of his officer. Finally, he had mastered his blank face. He stood by the bed and waited._

"_Fuck were you thinking, Manoso?" Captain Carter squelched out, his body wrapped with bandages from shrapnel, his arm in a cast. He shifted with discomfort._

_Carlos stared back at his bandaged superior, prepping for his reprimand, emotionless._

"_You broke a direct order."_

"_Sir, I did what I would want someone else to do for me, Sir." Carlos spat._

"_That'll change the more you immerse yourself in this shitty line of work. You'll learn to let your men move on without you. That savior mentality will get you killed." He stared at Carlos._

"_Yes, Sir."_

"_You let your emotions govern your actions." It was an accusing statement, not a question._

_Carlos said nothing, he merely stood at parade rest, hands clasped behind his back._

"_Don't let it happen again."_

"_Yes, Sir." Carlos said briskly. Silence stretched across the room as he waited for his dismissal._

"_You saved my life, Soldier. You are no longer a fuck up, Scrap."_

"_Sir?"_

"_I did the same thing…once. Never again." He reached for Carlos and placed an empty clip laden with bullet holes and dents in his hand. "Thank you, Ranger."_

_Ranger turned the clip over in his hand examining it. It was cold, old, and weathered. He knew immediately its legacy. He swallowed hard. _"_Thank you, Sir." _

"_Pray to god this never happens again. It's not worth it._ _The next time this happens, you better have a hell of a reason for letting those sissy emotions come through again. Because, Ranger...I never want to see them again."_

"_Yes, Sir. The reason will be worth my own life, Sir."_

"_Damn straight, Soldier."_

"Damn straight!" Lester yelled over to Tank as he caught a clip in the air, startling Ranger.

Pulled out of his flashback, Ranger snapped back to the present, his grip tightened around the clip as he thought of Stephanie. Pocketing the fresh clip for his Beretta, he reached for the com units.

These were smaller than the standard shoulder devices and could not have the sound altered. Ranger slightly shook his head at the thought of Bobby and Lester. They nearly resembled the ones secret service agents would use, with the exception of the transmitter module. It was smaller and therefore not as bulky. Grabbing eight, he turned around to face the men and cleared his throat. Everyone snapped to attention, guns at their side, and stood at parade rest, with the exception of Ram, who had his back to the room.

Ram was busy searching through the 'larger and special firearm closet.' A man who loved toys, he grabbed two and got a huge grin on his face. "Hey, Vince! Check thes…" Ram's grin faded when he took in the current status of the room as he walked out with his new toys. Lester barely stifled a snort.

"I don't think that we will be needed a flame thrower for this mission, Claussen." Ranger said.

"Uh, uh, uh…yes, Sir." Ram placed the flame thrower and fuel pack on the bench and looked at the other gun in his hand.

"The grappling gun, yes."

Ram nodded and immediately went to parade rest.

"Channel two men." Ranger tossed every man a headset; each proceeded to place the earpiece and attach the small receiver to the inside of their vests. "Lock and load."

Everyone moved into action and Ranger turned to the wall. He pressed a button and Zero's voice came over the speaker.

"Police are coming down Haywood now, Boss. They are running a little later than you initially thought."

"ETA?" Ranger asked

"60 seconds."

Ranger looked over his shoulder to his men. "What are you going to do about it, Zero?"

"Sir, I'm headed down right now."

"You understand you are to tell them nothing."

"Completely, Sir."

"Stall them."

"I have a plan, Boss. Morelli's the lead man." You could hear the smile behind Zero's voice.

"What's our status?"

Slick's voice came over the line, "Chopper is touching down at the x now. Chaos is your pilot."

"Good. Woody?"

"Stiletto is being prepped now. She'll be at your mark and prepped for departure in 25 minutes."

"Not acceptable. We plan to arrive in 16."

"Uh…It'll be ready in 13 minutes, Boss."

"Good. We're headed up." Ranger walked across the room and lifted his left arm and swirled the air with his finger. The team grabbed their duffel bags and gear and loaded the elevator. Ranger pressed the button that said 'R' and the doors closed.

Woody reached for the phone amidst remarks from Slick. "You're a damn liar."

"Watch this." Woody dialed a number and waited. "This is Woody at RangeMan. Yes, I know you said the Stiletto would be ready in 25 minutes. If you value your job or care about your life, you'll have it ready to float in 13 minutes." He listened and smirked. "Why? Because the man who holds your life in his hands, is the Stiletto's owner and your boss, is going to be there in sixteen." He hung up the phone and held up his first three fingers to Slick. "Read between the lines, buddy."

The doors opened on the roof of RangeMan and the men emerged. Ranger stepped to the right and walked over to the side of the building, looking over the edge, and pulled out his phone. The draft from the chopper's blades didn't even faze the men as they walked to the open cavity. Throwing their bags into the spacious belly, they hopped in and secured themselves. Ranger peered down at the street and watched the red and blue lights approach his building as he spoke into his phone.

"You're en route? I understand. Yes. I am. Good, I won't be here. You'll be informed once we make contact."

"Hell of a sight, Boss!" Tank yelled over the vociferous sound the helicopter produced. His com was dangling around his throat, not activating the channel.

Ranger just stared at the street as Joe's SUV pulled up unnecessarily close to the building as it hopped the curb.

"Wish I could see Morelli's face when he arrives!" Tank said.

"Me too!" Both men turned to see Lester standing next to Ranger, his earpiece also dangling around his neck, a grin in place.

Tank checked the chopper and noted the remaining men waiting onboard.

"What the fuck are you doing, Santos?" Ranger yelled as Lester jumped on the small wall and unzipped his pants, taking a frontal stance.

"Just showing Morelli what I think of him!"

Tank rubbed his head and turned towards the chopper as Lester let loose, aiming for Morelli's car.

"You're just jealous you didn't think of it first, little brother!" Lester said gleefully.

Ranger narrowed his eyes and a corner of his mouth tipped up. "I didn't see this!"

Ranger marched to the chopper leaving Lester to do a little dance as he yelled, "Bullseye!" shaking off the last drips. "Ha! Take that you little fucker!" Lester bent down and gave Joe both fingers. "Asshole," Lester said to himself as he jumped down and jogged to the chopper, bounding in to join the rest of the crew. He smiled widely as he replaced his com.

"You're one crazy shit!" Vince's voice came through.

Ranger leaned into Chaos who nodded at Ranger's remarks. "Where to, Ranger?"

"Stone Harbor."

"Ok, Boss. Welcome aboard, ladies!" Chaos' bristly voice came through. "Hold onto your panties, this bird is airborne!

The feeling of ground security left as Chaos lifted off the roof. Rising high, he turned the helicopter south towards Stone Harbor. All the men were zoned in their element as they leaned their heads back and contemplated the unmentionable fate of Stephanie. Ranger zoned and watch the buildings shrink. "It's worth it." Ranger whispered.

000000

"We are at RangeMan, preparing to make contact." Morelli said into the radio.

"You are green to go." A voice replied.

"Got it." Joe signed off the radio and opened his door, gun checked at his side. Hearing a strange sound, he looked out his windshield. "What the hell?" Joe exited his vehicle and looked up to see an outline of a man in black.

"Ha! Take that you little fucker!"

Joe pounded his hood, "I hate that guy!" Joe yelled as he was joined by eight other blues.

One of the officers looked up and crinkled his brow, "You hear that?" he said looking around.

"Who cares? Let's go!" The men reached the front door of RangeMan and were buzzed inside.

"Can I help you?" Zero asked nonchalantly from the front desk as he took in Joe's bloodied appearance. Manuel and Benny were standing by the elevator looking incredibly gladiator-like with their massive forearms folded over their chest.

"Yeah. We're looking for Manoso." Joe practically spit.

"Manoso? Which one?" Zero asked, an eyebrow lifted.

"Hell you talking about? You know damn well who I mean! This is his building!"

Zero brought his middle finger up to the side of his head and scratched his temple, just staring at Joe, shaking his head.

Steam was practically shooting out of Joe's ears. "We'll looking for Ricardo Carlos _Manoso_…"

"Ohhh, then you're in the right place." Zero cut him off, biding time and infuriating Morelli.

"No, shit. He's wanted for questioning in a murder."

"Murder? I don't think we can help you."

Joe placed his hands on his hips, resting one on his gun. "And why is that, prick?"

"Mr. Manoso's personal association and knowledge of murders is nonexistent, so he would be of no use to you in your investigation and questioning process." Zero explained eloquently.

"Oh?" Joe said sarcastically. "What about all the other murders you thugs have conveniently committed and escaped trial?"

"We don't believe in murdering people who don't deserve it."

"Is that right?"

"Absolutely. And you would know about it, so it wouldn't be considered murder. Therefore, you wouldn't need to question anyone." Zero stated off-handedly.

"I'm here for Manoso and I'm not leaving until he comes down that fucking elevator and leaves in my custody."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Morelli. Do you have an appointment?"

"NO! I don't have a fucking appointment! We're the goddamn POLICE! We don't need a fucking appointment!" Joe pulled Zero from the desk, pulling the gun from his holster and dragging him up nose to nose. Manuel and Benny uncrossed their arms and the other officers pulled their guns on them, following Joe's lead, startled by the addition of a weapon, on the ready. The Rangemen just stared at the officers, arms relaxed at their sides, firearms untouched.

"I can't inform you as to the whereabouts of Mr. Manoso unless you have an appointment." Zero said, unfazed by Joe's gun pushed into his cheek.

"You _will_ inform me of his whereabouts as he is a suspect in a killing."

"I see. So now he killed someone? I thought you said he was wanted for questioning in relation to a murder?

"He murdered my partner you asshole, and I'm going to see him fry." He hissed into Zero's face.

"So, are you saying she deserved it?"

"Fu…" Junior and Zip took that moment to walk in, startling the officers.

"Don't fucking move!" Officer Beck screamed. The officers fanned out into a circle pointing their guns at the four men. More officers entered the building and pulled their guns at the sight of disorganization unfolding.

"There's a chopper that left the top of this building!" An officer said as he kept his gun on Junior.

"Fuck me. Did Manoso leave the premise?" Joe barked into Zero's face.

Zero just stared like he was watching a grasshopper jump.

"Is Manoso even here? I am ordering you with a gun asshole! Where the fuck is he?"

"I'm afraid I cannot disc…"

"What in the name of hell is going on here! Stand down! Stand down! Everyone! Put your fucking guns down! Christ!"

The officers complied at the command of the new arrival.

"Morelli! What the fuck do you think you are doing!" Arnie ran over and pulled Morelli off of Zero.

"Stay out of it, Rupp. We're here for Manoso."

"And you think by pulling a gun on the front desk you're going to get what you want? What the hell?" Arnie looked around at the scene and shook his head. He pointed to several officers and pointed to the door. Junior and Zip stepped to the side, allowing them to pass. They then walked to the elevator and bumped fists as they entered the elevator, grinning.

Already knowing the answer, Arnie turned towards Zero, "Mr. Manoso needs to come downstairs or we will get a warrant for his arrest. Where is he?"

"Not here." Zero replied

"What do you mean he's not here?" Joe burst.

"Thank you for your cooperation. Let's get out of here." Rupp called, shoving Joe to the door. Joe tried to fight off Arnie, screaming nonsense and waving his gun.

"Like hell we're leaving! You know procedure! Get a fucking warrant and we'll track him and his fancy ass helicopter and arrest him!"

"Morelli, make the call for the warrant. We can't do anything until we get it, so you make the call to the judge."

Joe shrugged off Arnie and stormed out the door, phone already to his ear.

Arnie turned back looking at the three Rangemen. "Sorry for your trouble." Arnie pushed through the glass doors, nodding to Zero.

"Well, that went over well." Benny said to Zero.

"It sure did. And I got it all recorded. You know, standard RangeMan procedure." Zero said, a slight twinkle in his eye.

"Standard my ass."

"That's right. If I can't get that asshole fired, I'm at least going to get him suspended."

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**I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I felt very satisfied with it, especially Ranger's little flashback, so I hope you did too! I know they haven't got to the boat yet, or Steph, but it takes prepping. I promise it's coming all too soon. Thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews. They absolutely make me love writing my fic and stimulate great ideas!**


	35. Chapter 35

*****You guys have blown me away with your reviews and messages! Thank you so much. Life is nearly caught up and I was determined to get this chapter up before leaving on vacation. Could you imagine waiting three weeks? I couldn't. I sure hope you love it!**

**Disclaimer: Language warning, SA- Special artillery, SA 7-4A- Imaginary SA gun, Slater/Del Margino are used interchangeably**

**Oh yeah, I placed a link for the Stiletto in my profile if you are interested*****

Previously...

_"Morelli, make the call for the warrant. We can't do anything until we get it, so you make the call to the judge."_

_Joe shrugged off Arnie and stormed out the door, phone already to his ear._

_Arnie turned back looking at the three Rangemen. "Sorry for your trouble." Arnie pushed through the glass doors, nodding to Zero._

_"Well, that went over well." Benny said to Zero._

_"It sure did. And I got it all recorded. You know, standard RangeMan procedure." Zero said, a slight twinkle in his eye._

_"Standard my ass."_

_"That's right. If I can't get that asshole fired, I'm at least going to get him suspended."_

* * *

The vast darkness was endless. From the sky to the sea, there was nothing but blackness. The outline of land had passed long ago, and the last gleam of lights from a shoreline melted into the consuming black of the sea. The sway was nauseating as the ship trudged through the water, tilting back and forth with the ebb of the waves. Stephanie lifted her head and groaned. Her body hurt all over and her shoulders were throbbing. Pulling her shoulders forward, she felt the tug of the zip tie digging into her wrists.

"You're still here?" She asked as she focused on the man standing in front of her.

"But of course." Slater grinned at her as she rolled her eyes, intensifying her headache.

"Why the hell does my whole body hurt?"

"I've found you to be less feisty when sedated. You had a small tumble down a large flight of stairs. Are you comfortable?"

"Are you kidding me?" Stephanie's voice raised in pitch. "You have my hands tied together then tied to a huge metal post! You threw me down the stairs and sedated me, maybe not even in that order! Am I comfortable? Fuck you, you…you…bad person!"

"Good, I'll take that as a yes." Slater tilted his head and smiled as he fingered her chin. "I wanted you to enjoy the view. Quite magnificent, don't you agree?"

Stephanie let out a pffft sound and leaned her head back against the metal pole glancing up at the moon trying to peak past a cloud. "If you call this magnificent, I can't wait to see what kind of shit hole you're taking me to."

Stephanie felt a sting on her cheek as her head jerked to the side from the force of Slater's palm. She hissed and closed her eyes as she felt the familiar taste of copper in her mouth. She stared at the maniac before her. '_Who would have thought someone so good looking could be so terrible?'_

"Don't tempt me, Querida. Just remember," Slater grabbed her head and shoved it against the iron pole, "Manoso believes you are still alive. That's it, he has a hunch, a hope. But I can take that fact away at any moment. He will come for you when we are in Colombia. Do not take my generosity for granted. It is because of me that you are still alive. If you weren't such a pleasure to my men and me, your body would be at the bottom of this ocean. Besides," he pulled out a knife and ran it hard along her hairline, "I am growing rather fond of you. It will give me great joy for you to stay alive long enough for me to kill you in front of Manoso." His eyes suddenly gleamed, "Or perhaps, I should kill him in front of you. I'll have to think on that. In fact, I may find that more enjoyable."

Stephanie gulped and tightly closed her eyes as she felt the razor sharp tip pierce her skin. Liquid trickled down her temple and cheek leaving a warm sensation along its path.

"You really think he's going to come?" Her words came out more for an affirmation.

"Oh, I know he will. He has sought me for too long and killed many of my men. I have not yet come close to rivaling the toll with the death of his men. I have only begun tonight. But you, my dear, will be the ace of trump." Slater patted her non-bloody cheek and yelled something in Spanish. Four men appeared and flanked him. "Stephanie, don't get into trouble while I'm away." He turned and let out his demonic laugh as he left Stephanie alone on the cold deck.

Stephanie let out a dry sob as she thought about Cal, and slunk down against the pole. She let out a high-pitched frustrated scream as she brought her knees up to her chest, thinking of the fate of Ranger when he came for her. "God damn it all to hell." She placed her head on her knees and the tears started to leak. "Hurry, Ranger. Please."

000000

Nearly 16 minutes on the button, Chaos had the chopper hovering over Stone Harbor, descending on a cement slab. Ranger patted Chaos on the shoulder as his men jumped out with their gear in hand. Jumping down, Ranger motioned to Chaos, and as quickly as the helicopter arrived, it was gone.

"Outside of each vest is a strobe light. If needed, pull down the flap over your left shoulder and twist." Ranger said. "We have smaller, quite powerful Maglites."

Two men dressed in fatigues approached Ranger and his seven men, saluting Ranger. Ranger nodded and dismissed the formalities as Bobby and Hal bent over the bags to distribute the maglites.

"Welcome to Stone Harbor, Sir!" A blocky man with a barbwire tattoo around his neck said.

"Show Hector to the Stiletto." Ranger commanded. A man who looked like he rode along side Attila the Hun nodded to Hector and broke from the group, jogging toward a large building.

"The boat has been removed from dry dock, Sir."

Ranger was beginning to feel the inkling of irritation by this young soldier's overzealous attitude.

"Sir, we got the call to move up the process and the Stiletto is fue…"

"How long have you worked here, Wick?" Ranger snapped as his men finished zipping their bags. Lester smirked and nodded to Tank who shook his head, giving him a warning glare. Bobby perked and eyed Lester.

"Uh, two months, Sir."

"Then you should be familiar with procedure." Ranger spat.

"Um, I, uh…I understand procedure, Sir." Wick looked like he was about to pee his pants on the spot as Ranger stood towering over his face, death glare in place.

"Then you should be aware that I did not request an itemized itinerary of preliminary launch preparations fishing for commendation, but for my boat to ready upon my arrival."

"Y…yes, Sir."

"If you value your life you will answer this question correctly. Is my boat ready for departure, soldier?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" Beads of sweat were forming along Wick's brow.

"Let's move!"

Wick turned quickly and the Merry Men all fell behind.

"Bastard, I'm not paying you!" Bobby hissed to Lester.

"Hell you are!" Lester whispered back

"You said he was going to snap!"

"Did you see the front of that kid's pants?" Tank leaned over to Bobby. "He pissed down his leg. Give the man his money."

"Fucking traitor, Tank!" Bobby said as he slapped a hundred-dollar bill in Lester's hand.

Tank proceeded to smack Lester on the back of the head. "Get the hell up there and focus."

"Jealousy, man. Jealousy." Lester said as he pocketed the money.

The men walked into the large boating shed Hector disappeared into. There, gently bobbing up and down in the water was the Stiletto. All black, and very new, Lester, Ram, Bobby, and Hal sucked in air.

"Good, god. I didn't know it was _the_ Stiletto." Bobby said.

"Hell, yeah. I thought it was just a nickname for the boat, not from the prototype." Lester said.

The boat was wide and sophisticated. Topping out at 60 knots per hour, without slight modifications, it was sure to be an effective interceptor.

"Load up men." Ranger said.

The men complied and stepped onto the boat, disappearing below the encased walkable top into the boat's holding area. Hector motioned from inside the driving window and Ranger gave him a signal as he boarded. The boat roared to life. Ranger stood and surveyed his men, he was locked down in "wind mode." The men checked their weapons again and Tank unzipped one of the bags, divvying out supplies, prepping themselves for their own disembarkment.

Ranger turned and silently moved forward to Hector. Hector was expertly navigating the boat away from the dock and boat chamber. The boat's ability to function in shallow water was superb, and its construction allowed minimal drag utilizing the energy from waves to move even faster.

"Hola, Boss," Hector said as he finally left the docked area.

"Open her up, Hector."

Hector smiled and nodded. "Heh, si, sir!"

Suddenly, the boat launched forward and fast approached the open waters of the Atlantic. Ranger looked at the black device in his hand and frowned. Still no signal.

"Shit," Ranger pressed a button and received the same result.

"Where to?" Hector asked.

"South." Ranger kept his sights forward at the vast emptiness ahead.

"What's the range?"

Ranger gave Hector a blank stare.

"When will we know the exact location of the barge?" He asked more specifically.

"We have a range of approximately 35 miles out here. Give or take. It's over one hundred on land, that's how we know she's out here." Ranger internally sighed and looked at the blank screen of the tracking device. "Somewhere."

The Stiletto pushed smoothly through the water, cruising around 50 knots. Suddenly, the screen bleeped. Ranger snapped his eyes to the handheld screen. "Mother of god."

Hector looked at Ranger expectantly.

"Take her east." Ranger commanded. His heartbeat quickened slightly with anticipation.

Lester's head appeared in the entryway. "Why the sudden turn?"

"We got him," Ranger said.

"Hot damn!" Lester placed a hand on Ranger's shoulder and nodded once, turning back to inform everyone.

"Get it moving, Hector." Ranger pulled out his phone and listened, his face unreadable.

"You got it, boss." Hector checked the coordinates on the handheld and murmured to himself as he pushed the throttle full, tapping a little red button on the side. The Stiletto surged forward unmoved by the new demand for speed. Ranger looked down at the digital nautical readout, '63 knots.' This sucker could fly. "She sure goes without all the weight, Boss."

Ranger murmured into his phone before hanging up to join his men. "Dios," he whispered. "I'm coming, Babe."

000000

"What do you mean she can't issue it?" Joe screamed into the phone. "Hell she can!" Joe hung up the phone and ran his hand through his hair. Arnie stood off by the hood of his car, arms folded, picking at his lip, watching Joe get rejected by his third judge. He checked his watch and began to fidget. It was only a matter of time; hopefully Ranger had already touched down where he needed to be. Watching Joe's movements, he suddenly perked up.

Joe looked around nonchalantly and walked with steady steps to the side of the RangeMan building. Arnie moved quickly and stopped on the perpendicular side of the building, leaning against the wall looking occupied as not to attract attention. He craned his neck and heard Joe angrily dial another number. He heard him pacing, then stop. "Yeah, Judge Tolenni? Joe Morelli. You owe me a favor and I'm cashing in. Now." Joe was silent as he listened. "Fuck you don't. Of course I do, and no one knows. I have the evidence against your cousin stashed in the Zietara case from over a year ago." Joe laughed, "I knew you'd listen. I need a warrant yesterday. Carlos Manoso."

"Holy hell." Arnie whispered. He moved quickly towards the street and ran to his car, making a few quick notes. He exited his vehicle and took a deep breath. Seeing that Joe was still not out front, he yelled for Joe, "Morelli?" He turned to a few officers standing around a squad car, "You guys seen Morelli?" They shook their heads and shrugged. "Let's saddle up. We've been here long enough." The guys nodded and began to dissipate. "Morelli!" He walked to the side of the RangeMan building. Joe was disconnecting his call. "What are you doing back here?"

"Just making some phone calls."

"We're wrapping up here. It's time to go."

"Not so fast, Rupp. I got a warrant."

"Warrant for what?"

Joe beamed with pride, "For the arrest of Manoso."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Arnie raised an eyebrow.

"Should be having it in my grubby little hand any moment."

"No capable judge would have issued a warrant for Manoso's arrest. Under what grounds?"

Joe smirked. "Murder of a police officer."

All emotion fell from Arnie's face. "Who issued?"

"Judge Tolenni." Joe looked at his watch. "Oh good, looks who here." A small Hispanic woman they both recognized as from the judge's office stepped out of blue Chevy Malibu.

"Here's your warrant." She handed the folded paper to Joe and returned briskly to her car. Joe stared at the paper and smiled.

"Show time." Joe said. Arnie's eyes locked on the paper and then he stared at Joe. "Let's go Rupp, post haste."

"But…" Arnie began.

"There's no but, this is a legal document. Judge approved. Where are you boys going?" Joe said to the officers getting into their cars. They exchanged looks, "I got a warrant. We have a criminal to apprehend."

The officer's followed Joe as he turned back to RangeMan, walking to the front door. Joe held up the warrant and the doors unlocked.

"May I help you?" Zero asked.

"Yeah, I got a warrant for the arrest of Ricardo Carlos Manoso. Where the hell is he?"

Zero took the warrant from Joe and surveyed it, nodding. "It all looks legit. Unfortunately, he's not here."

Joe's face quickly turned petulant. "What the hell are you talking about."

"Yes you have a warrant for Ranger's arrest, but he isn't here."

"Where is he, asshole?" Joe spat out. The other officers looked around the vast entryway, waiting.

"I don't know. I'm just a desk boy. Sitting here being an asshole monitoring who enters the building." He gave Joe a cheeky smile.

"Then get someone down here who knows where he is." Joe hissed.

Zero punched a number up to the control room and pressed the speakerphone button. "Control?"

"Report, Zero." Junior's voice boomed through.

"Yeah, I got Detective Morelli down here with a warrant for the arrest of Mr. Manoso."

"Copy that. And?"

"And, he would like to know the whereabouts of Ranger." Zero stated calmly as he rubbed his arm hairs down.

"You're going to have to tell him that he's not up here."

"All right, he heard you." Zero turned to Joe, "He's not here. Anything else I can help you with tonight?"

"Where the hell is he?" Joe yelled.

"Control?" Zero said.

"Yes?"

"Anyone know the current location or whereabouts of the boss?" Zero asked.

"Boss went offline earlier this evening. We have no idea where he is." Junior said.

"Over." Zero disconnected and turned his attention back to a very irate Morelli.

"I just saw him not more than 20 minutes ago!" Joe slapped his hands on the desk. Joe turned on his heels and walked to the elevator where Benny was standing, arms folded. "Get out of my way. I'm going to search this entire fucking building and am not going to leave without Manoso in tow."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." Zero stood from behind his desk. The officers put their hands on their hips, over their guns, watching Zero.

Joe turned and faced him, his face practically purple, "Yes-I-can. Look at the paper."

Zero held up the warrant for effect, "You have a warrant for the arrest of Ricardo Carlos Manoso. That's it. Under no circumstances does this warrant entitle you to the searching of the RangeMan premises. If you would like to obtain another warrant to search this building, you are more than welcome. If you would like to wait here in the lobby on the sofas, perhaps I could have Ella bring some cookies down for you. If you choose not to wait, then have a nice day."

"I could go for some cookies." An officer piped up.

"Gggaah! Fine! We'll find him another way." Joe yelled.

There was a crackling sound over the radio. "..oso helic…south."

Joe grabbed the radio off an officer's shoulder, "Repeat. Come again?"

"We got a visual on the helicopter that left Manoso's building." The voice said over the radio.

"Where?"

"We got it going south, towards the coast. We don't know yet his exact location."

"Shit." Joe looked at his watch. "It's going to take forever to get to the coast. Call river patrol. We need a boat. Call the precinct, we need a chopper."

Arnie looked at Morelli and Zero, his phone started buzzing at his side. He moved towards the elevator and the back of the lobby, slowly. He looked at the readout and stilted. It was Ranger. He looked at the other officers and suddenly Joe stormed past them to the door, his followers in tow.

"Rupp," He answered.

"The less you know the better. I have only just now sent our signal location to my men." Ranger stated.

"Morelli's got a warrant for your arrest."

There was silence for a beat. "I understand."

"There was nothing I could do."

"Get to Stone Harbor." Ranger disconnected and Arnie stared at Zero as he put his phone back on his belt, sighing.

"Hey, boss understands. You're one of the few men in that department he still trusts." Zero said as he punched the keyboard.

"Yeah, but I have to tell _them_ where he is."

"I wouldn't be too concerned about disclosure."

Arnie frowned. "Why?"

"Because he told you where to go, not where he is."

Arnie smiled. "Yeah, he did didn't he?" Arnie walked out the door and found Morelli talking animatedly on the phone. Arnie tapped him on the shoulder.

"Just got a call from Manoso."

Joe gave him a blank stare and said, "Just a minute," into the phone and covered it. "He called?"

"Yeah, said to go to Stone Harbor." Arnie said.

Joe clapped Arnie on the arm and turned back to the phone. "Sir, I just got the call that he's at Stone Harbor. Yes sir. I'll be there in less than ten." Joe disconnected and turned to Arnie. "What?"

"You told them he was at Stone Harbor. I didn't say that."

"No, but it got us our ride. Let's get that bastard."

000000

The Stiletto sailed across the water as if it was skating across a slab of ice at nearly 70 mph. After leaving Stone Harbor 10 minutes prior, they were anxiously waiting for their interception. They had been traveling for nearly 20 minutes and they were rapidly gaining ground on the barge. The men sat silently in the dimmed cabin, heads back eyes closed. Some were shaking their legs incessantly. Others sat austere. They knew they were closer than ever to retrieving a very precious cargo and there was no room for error. Never before had a mission objective carried such a price. Ranger's voice broke through the silence of their earpieces.

"We have visual." The men's eyes flew open and jaws clenched. "ETA six minutes. We're going dark."

The men stood and readied themselves. Guns were clicking and being rechecked after being checked and rechecked several times before. The men stood and nodded to each other. They could feel the boat begin to lose speed.

The men looked up at Ranger's arrival in the doorway. "We're going topside."

Ranger opened the side door and hopped out on top of the boat. The barge was massive as the short distance was closed. Hector had noticeably decreased the speed to under 20 mph as the men made their way to the top of the Stiletto. The men looked up.

"Holy, fuck, Ranger!" Lester said. "I thought you said this was a barge!"

"Good god." Hal said.

"It's a fucking ocean freighter!" Vince exclaimed as he scaled the side.

"We go with the intel we have." Ranger said.

Expertly, Hector decreased the Stiletto's speed to match the liner. Pacing the boat, Ranger and his men prepared to mobilize. Vests were on, guns loaded. They stood craning their necks as they stared up the towering side of the rusty black and burgundy liner. The sound of the ocean liner reverberated through their heads with its archaic motors pushing it forward. The Stiletto remained silent and undetected. Through the resonating sound of the liner's engines, they could hear the distinct orders through their earpieces.

"Men, we know our objective." Everyone just stared at their leader. Waiting. "Del Margino is probably not alone."

"Team Alpha, take the stairs to the lower levels, there are more containers down there. Team Beta, drop a level and run plank to the bow."

His comrades nodded in affirmative.

"And you, Boss?" Tank asked as he secured an extra knife to his leg. The others waited for Ranger's response.

"Will be securing the upper deck. I do not need to remind you," Ranger looked at his men, armed and ready, their training sternly placed on their faces, "that we take no prisoners."

"Del Margino?" Bobby asked.

Ranger's eyes darkened severely, "No exception. Ram!"

Ram nodded and revealed his grappling gun in his left hand. He positioned himself on the Stiletto and shouldered the gun aiming high. He pulled the trigger and fired up the side of the ocean liner, the whirling sound of the rope uncoiling as the grapple soared the distance of over 60 feet. Handing the gun off, he and Tank pulled the rope until the hook caught on the upper rim of the liner. A single rope draped down the side of the vessel. The Stiletto bobbed with the waves of the liner sloshing along the bottom as they continued to sail south. A gust of wind whipped across their faces, each person staring and waiting.

"Go." Ranger commanded. Starting with Lester, he grabbed the rope and silently began his ascent. Hand over hand, and his legs wrapped around the bottom, he pulled himself up, using the side of the boat as he approached the top. When he passed the middle, Hal followed suit. As Lester silently hooked his leg over the ledge of the ship, Bobby quickly followed Hal. Ram and Vince followed in the same procedure. No one said a word or dared look at Ranger. His face was a stone façade. Tank squeezed Ranger's shoulder and wordlessly climbed the rope. Hector popped his head out and Ranger tossed him the grappling gun.

"Hector, take the boat back not more than three miles. Stay alert. Make your calls. Double time!" Ranger grabbed the rope as Hector disappeared. Ranger took a deep breath as he watched Tank effortlessly lift his massive body over the top edge. Tank's head appeared near the hook and he saluted Ranger, waving off.

"God speed man." Tank said. He motioned to Lester and Bobby and they deftly moved across the deck, alert and deadly.

Ranger nodded. He heard the motor effortlessly increase and felt the Stiletto begin to move under his feet. Like walking on a treadmill, we walked in place along the top of the Stiletto until he was dangling above the water, the Stiletto going out to sea. Pulling hand over hand, he swiftly and methodically pulled himself up the rope. His forearms and biceps tightened as he ascended the side of the liner, finally cresting at the top. Ranger turned and saw Hector take the sleek black boat away and soundlessly create distance. Glancing at his watch, he turned the dial. With the current speed of the massive ocean liner, they had no more than 35 minutes to neutralize Del Margino and his men and find Stephanie before the coast guard, police, and feds were on them.

Find Stephanie. "Shit," he whispered. Ranger crouched down and surveyed the haphazardly placed containers and main deck area. "What a waste of space." Normally, stacked well over another 60 feet, there were a few containers placed sporadically across the main area, not even double stacked. He could hear a grunt come through his earpiece. This was his training. He knew what to do, but the stakes had never been this high. Ranger closed his eyes and honed in all his training and assignments. He thought back to his words to Captain Carter so many years before. Now, as he sat here on this boat, he realized he really did have everything to lose. His eyes fluttered open to reveal black pools of revenge. Stealthily, he began his ascent towards the front of the ship, aware of his surroundings and sensitive to every sound. Halting against a large intake tube, he saw movement to his left. A patrol man with an AK-47.

"They've got watchers." He spoke over the radio.

"Copy that. We've got two assholes at the bottom of our stairs." Vince's voice came through.

Like an eagle eyeing his prey, Ranger kept sight on the rebel, memorizing his moves. "Hand to hand. We want to prolong our presence as long as possible."

"Affirmative." Lester's voice broke through, "Tank already performed his chiropractor adjustment."

Ranger smirked at Lester's remark as he crept up behind the watchman. Standing erect and undetected behind the man, in one fluid move, his arms swept in front of the soldier's face and a loud ephemeral crack filled the air. Ranger dropped him to the ground and dragged him to the intake tube. Removing the AK-47, he lifted the dead body and dropped him head first into the tube, hiding his feet. Satisfied, Ranger moved forward.

"Come around the side," Ranger heard Bobby's voice. More grunting followed as more muffled cries of the enemy were dropped by the hands of his men.

Ranger plastered himself to the side of a blue container and waited. He watched the interaction of two men on the next lower deck exchange a drag on a cigarette. They passed the cigarette off then spoke into their radios before walking their separate ways. He felt it before he heard it. The metal of the container vibrated slightly against his cheek. He looked up and saw the gun barrel of another watchman above him, standing on the container. Deftly, Ranger crept to the short end of the box. Mechanically, he removed the knife from his boot and stuck it in his mouth as he climbed the backside of the container, listening intently while he climbed. The man had not yet moved. As Ranger peered over the top, he saw the man drag his cigarette and shift from one foot to the other. Taking this moment, Ranger surreptitiously launched himself behind the man. Like slow motion, he retrieved the knife and slashed it across the gunman's throat, flipping him over his leg as he silently laid him flat. Kneeling over the dead man, Ranger scanned the body and found a radio. He pulled it off and listened to the exchange of Spanish.

"Observador Azul!" (Blue watcher)

Ranger looked at his container and immediately moved into action. He took a rope from his side pocket and secured one end in a knot to the dead man's belt. Scanning the container, he saw no rings or brackets to attach the other end of the rope.

"Azul!" The voice came through the radio.

"Fuck." Ranger whispered as he saw a man walking across the lower deck towards him. Removing the man's cap, Ranger placed it on his own head and shouldered the man's rifle.

"Azul, usted batard!" The voice came across the radio again. He saw a man march up the stairs on the east side. Anchoring the other end of the rope around his own ankle, he pulled the rope taut and threw the man over the west side of the blue container, bracing himself for the pull. He picked up the cigarette and stood.

"Azul!"

"Si?" Ranger said in a thick accent. He placed the cigarette in his mouth and leaned over the edge.

"Qué pasa?" The man yelled up.

Ranger took a drag and flicked the cigarette down to the guy, "Fumar." He replied as he rapidly blew out the smoke.

The man ducked as the cigarette bounced orange ash off his shoulder. "Compruebe su radio."

Ranger looked at the radio and pulled it up to his ear, simultaneously pulling on his leg to check the weight of the man dangling on the backside of the container. He beat the radio with his hand a few times and looked at the guy, shaking his head. "No. Pedazo de mierda." Ranger said tossing the radio down. As Del Margino's man caught the radio and examined it, Ranger jumped off the container. Taking the man by surprise, he dropped the radio and grabbed for his neck as Ranger's arm wrapped tighter around his throat. Holding him firmly with his right arm, Ranger reached around and grabbed his knife, stifling any screams that escaped the soldier as the blood spurt through his chest and throat. His legs stopped twitching and he let the body collapse.

Dangling on the side of the container, Ranger curled up and cut the rope from his foot with his knife, flipping back onto the ground, over his new victim. He heard the body drop on the other side and picked up the radio. "Claro," he said as he squatted on the ground and looked around. An affirmative came through the radio. He tossed the gun and hat and continued his pursuit around the containers. He could hear the advances of his men in the belly of the boat, their conversations a minimum.

As he moved around containers, he stayed low next to a large pole. He placed his fingers on the deck and felt the warmth. Staring at his fingers, he rubbed the liquid between his fingers and stared at the red smear on his thumb. He noted the small pool of blood he had placed his hand in, and the cut ties left on the ground. His vision moved to the lower deck towards the front of the ship, his eyes trained to two lone figures illuminated in a large spacious area near the side of the ship. Ranger wiped his hand clean on his black cargoes and removed his Beretta 92FS.

"I'm trained for this."

He walked around a vent shaft with his gun drawn steadily pointed at Stephanie's captor as he descended the stairs next to the ship's side ledge. He could hear Stephanie whimpering as he reached the bottom.

"Stop."

Ranger stopped, but did not lower his gun. Slater tightened his grip on Stephanie's hair and jammed the gun to her temple. Her face was tear stained and bloody, her jeans torn, and her hands tied behind her back. Gun still in hand, Ranger relaxed his position. He spread his arms to the side, palms out.

"Come alone I see?" Slater looked around and smirked. "Remove your radio." Ranger complied and took out his earpiece placing it on the deck. "Good. And your gun?" Systematically disengaging the magazine, his clip clanked to the ground and he placed his Beretta 92FS next to the radio, never taking his eyes off Slater.

"Let her go, Margino. You have me."

"You think it was you I wanted? Ha! I didn't want either of you. But you had to be Mr. Valiant didn't you? Always out to get the bad guys, huh? Eight years, I have waited for this moment. For this shipment! Just like you want to run _your_ business, I want to run _my _business."

"Then why the theatrics?" Ranger asked.

"There are no theatrics. You were the one coming to _my _country to destroy _my_ enterprise."

"You're a fuckin' nut."

"You watch your mouth, Manoso! This," he waved the gun around the ship and darkness, "this is my empire. Now, not even you and your black clad minions stand in the way. In a matter of minutes we will be in international waters. My shipment will be on its way to completion and it won't matter anymore. And this beauty," he stroked Stephanie's cheek with the barrel of his gun, "is merely a victim of circumstance." He ran his tongue along her cheek, tasting her dried blood. "Mmmm, she tastes good, amigo."

Ranger felt pure unleashed rage boil through his veins, in that moment, he lurched for Slater. Slater shoved Stephanie to the ground, dropping his gun. She hit the deck with a thud. The two men entwined themselves and began to beat one another. Slater took a solid blow to the obliques just as his fist collided with Ranger's jaw, and his knee Ranger's side. Ranger bent over the side of the boat as Slater scrambled over to Stephanie. He picked up his gun and dragged her by her hair to her feet. She stumbled over her scraped legs, her eyes sending a pleading look to Ranger. Her hair, a tangled mess, enhanced the fear on her face. Ranger and Slater threw daggers with their stares, daring the other to make the first move.

"Enough!" Slater yelled as he pointed his gun.

Ranger just stared. This wasn't the first time he had been on the receiving end of someone's weapon.

"Pity we ended up like this. I sort of liked you. I will admit, you are quite skilled. Your government has never shied in the area of lethal combat training. The funny thing is, Manoso, this was never supposed to happen, and you were never suppose to be here. I was just going to leave quietly in the night. Leave you all behind to let someone else take the fall. But with her," he inhaled Stephanie's hair, "it was too easy. I knew I could get to you, Carlos. Your love for this woman has betrayed you."

"It was worth it." Ranger said.

"And to die for her?"

"Every day." Ranger said without hesitation.

Stephanie let out a sob.

"Always the superhero, eh?"

"Regardless of what happens to me, you will be dead by the night's end, Margino."

"So will you." Slater raised his SA 7-4A. "It's over Manoso! Adios."

A scream pierced the night air. The sound of Slater's gun was deafening, the blast was blinding, and the pain, searing. Jumping forward and throwing his weight into his victim, Slater shoved the body off the ship, sending it plummeting to the black abyss of water.

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**I hope upon my return, my inbox is filled with your thoughts and reviews, or rather reviews of hatred for leaving you hanging :(, for this chapter. Love it? Hate it? I love hearing your feedback, I'm a slave to you all. I have already started the next chapter because I was so evil. I've been so great about not doing cliffys, and only doing it when necessary. Don't hate me... ****and if you're interested, don't forget to check out the link in my prof for the Stiletto.**


	36. Chapter 36

*****Finally! Can I just say this was sooo long overdue? Grad school has been kicking my butt, I ended up taking summer classes; then on a whim, applied for a program that ended up with me studying in India. So, here I am, finally back and settled and am dedicated to not abandon my fic.**

**Thank you all so much for sending me messages and encouraging me to continue, I'm just sorry it went untouched for so long and so many of you have been waiting. The next update won't be painstakingly absent, so I hope there is still the interest.**

**Disclaimer: Language warning, SA- Special artillery, SA 7-4A- Imaginary SA gun, Slater/Del Margino are used interchangeably. Oh and the Stiletto...awesome Ranger boat.**

_Previously...__"And to die for her?"_

_"Every day." Ranger said without hesitation._

_Stephanie let out a sob._

_"Always the superhero, eh?"_

_"Regardless of what happens to me, you will be dead by the night's end, Margino."_

_"So will you." Slater raised his SA 7-4A. "It's over Manoso! Adios."_

_A scream pierced the night air. The sound of Slater's gun was deafening, the blast was blinding, and the pain, searing. Jumping forward and throwing his weight into his victim, Slater shoved the body off the ship, sending it plummeting to the black abyss of water._

* * *

The scream continued as Slater stared over the edge, the sound of the body entering the water was swallowed by the noise of the barge and the ocean clapping the sides of the metal vessel.

"You bastard!" Stephanie yelled as she collapsed to the deck, sobbing.

Slater whipped around and smirked at the broken form of Stephanie shaking on the deck, a slippery smile spreading across his face. "Ahh, Corina. There is no need to weep." He moved with methodical steps until he was kneeling in front of her. "You have me, no?" Slater ran his hand along her tear stained face, smearing streaks of partially dried blood.

"Get away from me!" Stephanie tried to roll, kick, anything to get away from Slater. Ranger, in his own way, had just professed his no-strings-attached-no-price love for her, and taken a bullet for her. Again.

Slater let out a hallow laugh as his wicked face admired her. "I hate you! Don't touch me you piece of shit! Oh, god." She turned her face away and tried to scoot along the deck only to feel Slater's grip tighten and pull her upright.

"We still have a party to finish. That shot was heard around the ship. Any friends of yours still prowling my ship will meet a similar fate from my men." Slater pulled out his radio and began his orders.

Stephanie stole a glance to the side of the ship and fresh tears began to leak from her eyes. Pain stabbed at her heart and felt her stomach clench and began to pump yet again. She doubled over as the nausea consumed her, dry heaving as her stomach was emptied hours earlier. "Oh, Ranger." Her fingers feebly curled the cold surface of the ship, the pain wrenching.

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The icy water temporarily engulfed his senses, paralyzing his survival instincts. "Holy shit that stings." Ranger thought as he began to drift into an ulterior state of mind.

"_Kick your feet soldier! What the hell do you think this is? A fucking kiddy fountain? This isn't water aerobics! It's the goddamn Army Rangers! Kick, surface, breathe! Survival you bastard! Kick, surface, breathe! I'm going to strap you to the bottom of this fucking pool! Then you'll wish you were thinking you piece of shit! Even shit floats! Kick, surface, breathe!"_

"Babe," Suddenly snapping to his senses, Ranger pulled his thoughts forward and kicked, taking a salty breath of air as he breached the surface. The force of the water battered him as he tried to maintain a position near the massive boat. Placing his hand on the cool steel, he was rocked fiercely by the boat's wake as he kicked against the current. The massive ship continued to trudge ahead of him, no matter how hard he kicked, he was losing ground.

"Fuck," he breathed as another wake knocked him away from the vessel. As the bow of the ship made its way further from him, he continued to kick, the pain in his shoulder no longer an , Slater didn't aim for his head or he would have been fucked. Just like Cal had been wounded by an area unprotected by his vest, Ranger suffered a similar fate. The bullet pierced the fleshy area of his left pec to the side of his arm, making a clean exit, at least that's what he hoped. Adrenaline kicking in, he let out a primal scream as he kicked and swam with everything he knew. To no avail he continued to lose distance from the massive boat.

Suddenly, Ranger felt a snakelike object slither across his neck. On instinct, he grabbed it and felt it slip through his hands. "Holy shit." Ranger tightened his grip and stared up the boat. With the grappling rope from their earlier ascent wrapped around his forearm, he instantly felt himself pulled forward. Like bad body boarding, he centered his focus and inched his way towards the boat, methodically placing one hand over the other. Twirling and swaying from the force of the waves, he reached the side of the boat and pulled his body above the water line. Feet dangling in the frothy water, he composed himself. His shoulder began to throb and forced the pain away. Flipping his body around, he attached the rope to a black carabiner around his waist and loosely wrapped the rope around his leg. Arm throbbing, he walk up the side of the boat, emulating his earlier climb.

Painstakingly, he pulled his weight and sloshed up the steep vessel. As he neared the top, Ranger's foot slipped and his shoulder gave out, toppling him down the side. "Shit." Ranger flailed and managed to grab the rope as he dangled upside down, the rope taut on his leg. "Good, god…Babe," Righting himself, he curled up and swore to himself if he let the pain take over him again he would throw himself back into the Atlantic. Slowly and more assured, he finally crested the top.

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Even in the belly of the ship, Ranger's men could discern the sound of a gun firing. "Move! Move! Move!" Lester shouted to the Alpha team. "Topside! Yesterday!" Tank, Lester, and Bobby sprinted toward the staircase they had just descended on pure adrenaline, guns drawn. Suddenly, an object 'pinged' off the railing and the three men rolled simultaneously to the left of the staircase. Tank took refuge behind two large I-beams, and Bobby and Lester rolled three feet away behind a short steel wall.

"They know we're here!" Lester said, holding his gun up as rapid fire bounced off the metal and voices yelled angrily in Spanish.

"What was your first guess?" Bobby quipped as he began pulling items out of his pocket.

Searching the stern of the ship, the crackle of the radio broke into the Beta team's search, "Ram, Hal, Vince! Deck! Now!" Tank bellowed. "We're under fire."

"Holy shit!" Vince yelled. "This is a fucking war zone! Where did they all come from?"

Lester adjusted his vest and pulled out a small mirror and post and stuck it around the wall. "South America my friend."

"Tank, we're not going to make it topside." Ram said. "Main points of exit are currently blocked with unfriendlys. Tank…we're trapped."

"Shit, there's four above us, two on the stairs, and three maybe four positioned below us. Ow!" The mirror shattered as a bullet caught it, sending glass splinters into Lester's hand. "Fuckers." He whispered as his hand began to dot with blood droplets. Bobby shook his head as he turned towards his friend.

"Here," he handed Lester an oblong shaped cylinder and he smiled. "Tank, what do you got?" Tank pulled out a smoke grenade and held it up. "Good. We'll go on three. I'll send mine out, Tank, you drop yours. Santos, you throw the flash grenade up the stairs." The men all nodded.

"Hold fire. We'll run down the plank towards the stern of the ship. They know we're here and are going to be on upper grates waiting."

"Copy." Bobby and Lester acknowledged.

"Ready?" Bobby saw the head nods. "One, two.…three!"

They dropped the pins and hurled their grenades. Screams followed the sound of the flash grenade exploding above. Gunshots sprayed the walls as Slater's soldiers became disoriented with the flash and smoke. The three men tucked and rolled sprinting down the hall, unseen.

"We're going to have ten very unhappy Colombians when the smoke clears." Bobby said as they peered around a corner. All clear, they moved deftly towards the sound of gunfire.

Tank raised his hand and they all stopped. With his long arm, Tanked reached into an open space and grabbed a rebel by the throat, dragging him out of his hiding spot. The man gasped and was quickly silenced with a quick yank from Tank. Lester smirked at the sight. Tank signaled the 'all clear' and they moved forward.

The voices of Vince, Ram, and Hal continued to feed through in desperate tones. As Tank, Bobby, and Lester dropped down a level and approached the stern, the scene looked dismal.

"Holy mother of god." Lester whispered as they crouched down, surveying. "Ranger'd be pissed if he knew they were trapped like rats down there. Talk about not being aware of your surroundings."

"We have them from an elevated position, we should be able to knock several down." Tank began. Bobby ran a head count as Tank continued, "We'll spread along the gangway and come up from behind. Count?"

"Thirteen,"

"Hmm, alright, we should each be able to take three with an initial knife attack. Choose your target carefully. Cut from behind. Throw your knife at the one who turns a gun on you. Use the body as a shield against another."

"And from there?" Bobby said as he pulled his knife out and tossed it from hand to hand.

"Take 'em down. Brown, you take left, Santos, take right." The men snapped into guerilla warfare mode and silently moved into position. Each man lined themselves above their target and slipped over the railing, slowly lowering their bodies behind the men shooting at their companions, each silently mirroring the moves of the other. With knife in hand, Bobby dropped and grabbed a man from behind, slitting the man's throat. Pulling the body over his right side, he turned left and threw the knife at an unsuspecting rebel firing upon Ram a level below. The rebel shot his gun up the wall and dropped, falling over the railing with a scream.

Seeing the body fall over the railing, attention and confused shouting turned to the new RangeMan arrivals. Lester threw himself over the rail, taking out another gunman effortlessly, a scream slipping out as Lester tossed the body into another rebel's shots. The RangeMan Beta team, originally trapped, took the moment of enemy confusion to reassess their position, scrambling for a more advantageous assault point.

Bobby felt his body shield shred as it absorbed SA bullets from the right side and impact his vest. As he fell to the ground clutching his body shield, he pulled his sidearm out and pointed it at the man charging him with an SA rifle. Suddenly, the man's eyes went wide as he slumped to the ground, landing on Bobby's feet. Tank emerged, bloody knife in hand, and nodded to Bobby.

"Don't mess with my man, fucker." Tank said as he extended a hand to Bobby, effortlessly hauling him up. Bobby slapped him on the back and nodded.

"Vests work." Bobby coughed out as he patted his stomach. "Hurts like hell." The men turned their attention over to Lester who was taking out his third victim with a slight grin. "Let's get our men. We're going to have a welcoming committee running down that corridor any moment."

Ram, Vince, and Hal took out the remaining confused militants and scaled the stairs and railings. A little worse for wear, they were relatively unscathed. Ram placed a hand over his chest and coughed as he shouldered his gun. "Shit! Those bullets fucking hurt!"

Tank grinned at Bobby who also grimaced.

"You pussy. Would you rather be dead?" Lester said as he straightened tenderly. "We'll see who wins later ok? I'll show you mine, you show me yours."

"You little shit," Vince said as he eyed Lester's bleeding hand. "Each bullet you pay 50 bucks. Shows how sloppy you were."

"Fuck you, Vince. Funny you'd be saying that when I took one to save your…"

"Ladies!" Tank bellowed, "Later. We got incoming and a hell of a mess above us. We are at the bottom of this beast. They're going to be looking for us." The six men confirmed. Hal reached over a dead body and removed the radio, tossing it to Lester.

"Keep tabs on them." Hal said.

Lester attached the radio and the men began to scale the labyrinth of stairs, gangplanks, and corridors to the top of the ship, praying they weren't too late.

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Slater yelled into the radio, throwing it across the deck.

"See? You won't get out of here alive." Stephanie yelled. "They will come for me."

"A minor setback." Slater grinned as he shoved his foot into her back and she dropped to the deck. "Don't like your attitude, sweet." He pressed his knee into her back and squashed her head hard and leaned over her face, taking a deep breath into her hair.

"Just die!" She squeezed out. "You'll never have me."

"And where is your dear precious love to take you away from me now? Hmmm?"

"Right here."

Slater jerked his head up and yanked Stephanie with him, gun pressed hard to her head. "How the hell…"

"Ranger!" Stephanie's screamed.

"You just won't die, will you, Manoso?" Slater spat, his stance stilted with rage. Snapping to, Slater dragged Stephanie to the side of the ship and dramatically kissed her ear. "Still so sweet."

Ranger eased his steps towards them, his Beretta from their earlier confrontation only steps away. He couldn't risk a shot with his Babe so close. Slater was too good to miss twice. He looked on with wrath brewing.

"I've had enough of our games, Manoso. Adios, querida." Slater effortlessly picked up Stephanie and tossed her over the edge. This time, the horror of Ranger's scream piercing the darkness.

"Noo! Stephanie!" Horrorstruck, Ranger retrieved the Beretta from the deck as he ran to the edge of the ship, witnessing where her body entered the water. Sadistic laughter filled the night air and he heard the distinct sound of a gun being cocked. Ranger whipped around, his eyes black with fury. His Beretta molded with the contour of his hand, familiar with its position. All that mattered now was getting to Stephanie.

"You were prepared to give your life for her, yet again. But not this time." A smirk spread across Slater's face, his eyes black and beady like a snake. Slater stared at the 92FS Beretta in Ranger's hand and glanced over to the clip discarded from his previous heroics. He smiled at the blood running down his arm and pooling off his hand, dripping onto the deck. "You are finished. As are your men."

Ranger said nothing, his eyes flicked to his radio discarded next to the clip from earlier. Suddenly, a flash of light burst and a blast was heard as the two men faced off.

"Ahh, I see. Your casualties are many."

"Not as many as yours."

Margino smirked, "There's nothing left for you, Manoso."

Ranger stood assessing like a predator his prey, his grip tightening on his weapon. "There is Margino."

"And what is that, Amigo?"

"Fuck you."

Faster than the words left his mouth, Ranger's gun had already discharged the lone bullet left in the chamber. Gun raised and still pointed at his mark, the stunned look on Slater's face stared back at the malice laden one. Blood exited the entry point on his forehead, dripping towards his nose as he fell to his knees. "Fffu…"A gurgle escaped Slater's lips as his body slumped forward, motionless on the deck.

Rushing to the edge, Ranger surveyed the water below. "Stephanie!" Nothing. '_Shit. It's too damn dark_.' He thought as he retrieved a high-power flashlight from his pocket and scanned the water. '_Forty-five seconds? Sixty seconds? How long had it been_?' He continued to scan the choppy water, his chest clenching with every passing second. '_Oh, God. Where are you, Babe? And where the hell are my men_?'

Desperately searching the choppy sea, Ranger found nothing. '_Come on, where are you!_' Still no sign. Sweeping again, the light caught an uncharacteristic brilliance from the sea. It was fleeting, but long enough for Ranger to know the sea did not emit such a sparkle.

"Babe!" Without hesitation, Ranger dropped the flashlight on the deck as he jumped off the side of the barge, diving into the icy water, this time of his own will.

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The metal door leading onto the deck burst open as the six RangeMen made assault topside. Guns at the ready, they passed by numerous dead bodies that littered the deck.

"Someone's been busy." Ram said as they passed a container with a body dangling by his own weapon and another sprawled with his neck bloody and open.

"You could definitely say that again." Bobby said kicking another one over with his foot.

"I haven't heard from Slater in several minutes." Lester said pointing his weapon around a container. "I've got static since we left his buddies dead at the bottom of the ship."

"Radio silence?" Tank asked.

Lester shook his head no, "I've heard a few scattered voices through the static."

"Anything from Bossman?" Hal asked.

Bobby cleared his throat, "Not since we heard shots before rescuing your asses." A grim silence fell upon them as they moved forward.

The looks on everyone's face gave him the answer.

A sound of metal on a container made Bobby's steps freeze as he instinctively grabbed for his side, "Move!" Everyone readied their weapons at Bobby's voice and turned to see Bobby lurch forward, throwing a knife flawlessly up into a rebel's throat causing him to collapse. As the body gurgled on top of the container, the distinct sound of a metal object rolling perked their ears. "Get down!" The trained men jumped behind an adjacent container. Hitting the deck and covering their heads, they heard the grenade stop rolling as it reached the edge of the container above. A blast of heat and shrapnel splayed the air around pinging off the boat and metal boxes, shattering the box.

"Fuck that was close! All here?" Tank asked sitting up and rubbing his head.

A few murmurs replied and they looked around, counting five. "Bobby?"

"He was right here." Hal said looking around.

"Bobby!" Came their cries as they saw movement of a metal sheet that had collapsed and heard a low moan.

"Grab it!" Tank yelled as they scrambled around the large siding of the fallen container wall. "One, two, three!" The five overly muscular men easily removed the heavy sheet off Bobby, Lester was quickly at his side.

"Bobby, you okay man?"

Bobby crawled onto his hands and knees and Lester placed his hands on this shoulders to steady him. "Yeah, couldn't be better."

"You sure?" Lester moved his hand and pulled a piece of shrapnel shallowly embedded in Bobby's neck and tossed the piece of metal up to Hal.

Bobby let out a cough, "Got the wind knocked out of me. That's all." He dusted off his pants and nodded

"Good, you scared the shit out of me."

Bobby pat his friend's shoulder and stood.

"As touching as this is, we gotta move." Vince said his eyes assessing.

Bobby extended his middle finger and retrieved his gun from Hal's outstretched hand as they moved forward.

"Shit." Tank held up his fist and they stopped, viewing the deck below. A lone dark figure was sprawled on the deck. "Ranger," Tank led with his weapon and came to the body. As he approached, he realized it was not his friend. Using his foot, he flipped the body over and the bloody vacant stare of Del Margino looked back.

"Where's Ranger?" Lester said surveying the deck. The radio and Beretta magazine abandoned. "And Stephanie?"

The flashlight rolled to and fro with the ship's sway, casting its beam across the deck.

"Shit, there's only one place."

"There's blood everywhere, and not just from Slater." Hal said looking around

"Uh-oh," Bobby whispered.

"Stand guard!" Tank pointed to Lester and Ram. The rest of them ran to the side and looked over the edge.

"I can't see shit!" Vince yelled.

"Ranger!" Tank bellowed. Of course it fell on deaf ears, but it made him feel like he was accomplishing something.

"Hector, Hector. Do you copy?" Hal spoke into his radio. "Hector?"

"Si?" Hector's voice came back.

"Shit. Santos! Get your ass over here!"

Vince ran to monitor with Ram, and Hal handed off the radio to Lester who began speaking rapidly in Spanish. "_Hector get that fancy ass boat back here double-time! Good." _Lester listened as he watched the other men search the water. "_What do you mean? When? How long until they arrive? _Oh shit. _Double-time. Starboard._" Lester disconnected, "Stiletto, ETA 60 seconds. Men, we got company ETA fifteen."

"Who?" Tank asked.

"You don't want to know." Lester shook his head.

"Grab a rope!" Tank yelled as the men assembled and Ram began to tie the rope and toss it overboard.

Lester placed a hand to his ear, "Let's move! We got incoming!"

The men obediently hopped the ledge and repelled down the side of the ship as Hector expertly idled below the rope.

Safely on the top of the Stiletto, they monitored the top of the barge for hostile fire.

"There! The lights! You see it?" Vince yelled pointing north.

"Fuck me. You silly, bastard." Tank muttered under his breath. "Hector! Pull out!"

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Ranger kicked furiously, his life literally depending on it. Reaching forward, he knew he had his prize. "Babe!" Ranger flipped Stephanie over, her head lolling to his chest. "No, Babe!" Ranger held her tight as he rolled onto his back, laying her across him. "No!" Reaching up to his left shoulder, he pulled down the Velcroed material and twisted the exposed round object. "Breathe, Babe. Please, don't leave me."

The sleek boat pulled next to Ranger drawn over by the strobe beacon on his chest Vince spotted from the ship. He didn't actually hear the boat pull silently next to them, but he heard the cries of his men and felt several pairs of strong arms pull them from the water.

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**I hope this was satisfactory for everyone! Again, thanks so much always for waiting and for your awesome support, reviews, and messages! With my break, I'm hoping more to come next week :)**

_Special thanks to financebabe who stimulated my thoughts as to who should fly overboard when she so graciously gave her support through my fic!_


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